Kathua incident barbaric: Kovind

‘Our duty to ensure it does not recur’

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind addresses the nation on the eve of Republic Day in New Delhi on Thursday. PTI Photo / RB(PTI1_25_2018_000203B)

Calling the Kathua rape and murder “barbaric,” President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday said it is the collective responsibility of society to ensure that such a thing does not recur.

“Such an incident happening after 70 years of independence is shameful. We have to think what kind of society we are becoming. It is our collective responsibility to ensure such a thing does not happen to any girl or woman,” President Kovind said, while addressing students at the sixth convocation of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University in Katra of Jammu region.

‘Society’s responsibility’

“Recently one child became the target of a heinous and barbaric crime, which nobody could ever imagine,” he said, referring to the brutal rape and killing of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua. “It is our duty to ensure that such a thing does not happen in future to any of our daughters or sisters.”

“I feel the smile of children is the most beautiful thing in the world. It is the first responsibility of any society to ensure security of children so that they feel secure,” he said.