(Trigger warning: Descriptions of violence.)
"I want her to get educated – and that's why we stopped her from going to work," said 20-year-old Anil (name changed) whose younger sister was recently attacked with a sharp weapon and dragged by her hair on a busy road in Chhattisgarh's Raipur by her former employer.
As videos of the incident went viral a day after the incident on Sunday, 19 February, the police arrested the accused, a 46-year-old man who has been identified as Omkar Tiwari.
The 16-year-old girl sustained multiple stab wounds and was in serious condition shortly after the attack.
Speaking to The Quint outside the general ward of the hospital, where the girl is being treated, Anil said that the his sister was brutally assaulted by Tiwari because she quit working for him to focus on her studies.
"But Omkar Tiwari attacked her and almost killed her," he added.
He alleged that Tiwari also barged into their house in a drunken state and tried to attack their mother as well.
What Happened?
Anil told The Quint that his sister used to work at a general store owned by Tiwari, which is half a kilometre from their home.
"She worked there only for a month, during the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020 – and after she quit, Tiwari began harassing her," he alleged.
After the alleged assault, Raipur Police arrested Tiwari, saying, "A case was registered under Section 307 (attempt to murder) against the accused Omkar Tiwari alias Manoj. The accused is the operator of a shop, where the victim used to work earlier."
'Childhood Was Hard'
The minor girl's family was in a tight spot after the death of her father – she was barely 2-3 years old at the time. Struggling to make ends meet, her mother began working multiple jobs to support her children.
She opened a small makeshift restaurant where she served parathas – but soon, she was forced to shift elsewhere by the landowner.
Anil, too, got down to supporting his family and quit his studies after he completed Class 9. He found a job in a shop for Rs 9,000 a month.
"My mother was working very hard, I couldn't just watch her do this all alone, so I quit my studies and started working at a shop. I was earning Rs 9,000 a month and we were happy. Our only goal was and is to educate my sister. We decided that we will put in all efforts for her. She is our hope and pride," said Anil.
But the girl, who had grown up watching her mother and brother work hard, persuaded her family to let her work too. Anil was reluctant, as he wanted her to focus on her studies.
'Constant Harassment'
After the COVID-19 lockdown, the minor began working at Tiwari's shop – only to quit within a month to get back to her studies. Irked by this, Tiwari began harassing her; she was 14 years old at the time.
"My mother used to hide these things from me fearing that I might overreact and get into an argument, but I found out that Omkar was stalking and harassing my sister. He had also visited our house a few times and asked my mother to send her back to work. There was an exchange of words; my mother said she won’t send her back and we thought he would get over it. We didn’t want any trouble, our lives are a trouble as it is."Anil
Anil added that he also had a heated argument and scuffle with Tiwari sometime ago and thought he had seen the end of it – until his sister was attacked in broad daylight.
Demanding strict punishment for Tiwari, he said, "We only want Omkar behind bars so that he doesn't cause any more trouble for us."
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