‘Forbidden fruit’: Five-year-old burnt alive, another critical

The foliage in the sugarcane field was set on fire while the girls were there.

MUZAFFARGARH:

A five-year-old was burnt alive on Wednesday after a landlord set the leftover foliage in the field on fire allegedly to punish the girl and her friend for stealing sugarcane from there. The other child was critically injured and taken to a hospital, where she was reported to be in critical condition.

Raju, father of the deceased girl, said his daughter Alina and her cousin Sania, were playing in the sugarcane fields near their house in Kabutri Basti in Saitpur with some children from the neighbourhood. He said Nasir Majid, owner of the fields saw the children take sugarcane from there and allegedly set fire to the crop. Alina and Sania were injured and taken to Nishtar Hospital by some passers-by who had recognised the girls and informed their parents. Alina succumbed to her injuries on the way, while doctors treating Sania said that she was in critical condition.

The bereaved family said when they approached the police to file a complaint against Majid, they only filed a complaint against one of his servants, Murad, instead.



Majid denied the allegations and said that he had not set the field on fire. He said one of his servants, Murad, had done it and fled. He said when he went to his fields on hearing that it had caught fire, the child’s family were already there and saw him. He said some of his workers later told him that they had seen Murad start the fire. No one has been arrested so far.



Station House Officer Hafiz Noor said that the police did not have any evidence against Majid.

He said the case against Murad had been registered on Majid’s statement.

The child’s family later placed the body in front of the office of the Muzaffargarh district police officer and protested against the Saitpur police. They accused the police of protecting the landlord because “they had been bribed”.

They dispersed when the district police officer arrived at the scene and assured the protesters that he will order an inquiry into the incident.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 18^th, 2013.