Mother, son and daughter-in-law brutalise a widow and almost beat her to death over a boundary dispute
Long standing differences over demarcation of plot boundaries led to this gruesome incident
Slap on the government’s claim that dignity of women will be protected in Goa
TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
CAMURLIM: A male neighbour and two other women, stripped, dragged a widow with a six-year-old child, by her hair, stuffed chilli powder in her private parts and mercilessly beat her. Where: Camurlim, Bardez. Why: Over a boundary dispute.
Three days after the gruesome act, the perpetrator is still absconding and police have failed to trace the rogue.
And wait till you read this. Two of the women responsible for this crime are a mother and her daughter-in-law, who joined her son Jogre Sasve to brutalise the victim. According to the complaint, chilli and turmeric powder were stuffed into her private parts by Jogre Sasve. “I was also brutally assaulted by Jogre’s mother Sonabai Sasve and his wife,” the victim narrated.
The victim, and her 75-year-old ailing father live at the 20-point programme accommodation provided at Camurlim. This brutal criminal act, may not have the TV appeal of Tehelka Editor Tarun Tejpal’s alleged act in the lift of a five star hotel where the victim was his own junior employee, but is a slap on the government of Parrikar which pays mere lip service to the safety of women.
“The perception is that there is nobody for her,” says her lawyer who has filed a supplementary complaint after the earlier one filed by the police.
According to the police they have registered a case under sections 325, 506 (attempt to murder), 354, 341 and 376 r/w 34 (rape). Till late Thursday evening, the accused had not been arrested.
According to the victim, there has been a boundary dispute for the past two years between the accused and the woman to force her to leave the plot. The harassment has been going on for the last two years and has incrementally become harsher.
There have been assaults and complaints earlier, but the lethargy and the apathy of the police – who have treated it as a dispute between neighbours – is the reason why the assailants have become emboldened, her advocate alleged, adding that they have been trying to change the boundaries, which she has been resisting.
The account of what happened
Stating that on June 23 at around 4.30 pm Sonabai falsely accused her of breaking her cupboard, and when she demanded evidence three of them pulled her into their house and threw chilli and turmeric powder on her.
Then all three allegedly assaulted her with fist blows, says the complaint adding that Jogre took out a wooden-rib and hit me “indiscriminately at least 15 times; Jogre’s wife pulled out my nose ring; all of them pulled out my hair. There was a nail in the wooden-rib which pierced into my left knee in the assault.”
“Sonabai Sasve and her daughter-in-law tore my underwear and pinned me down to the ground; Sonabai Sasve closed my mouth to prevent me from screaming and shouting for help. As Sonabai Sasve and her daughter-in-law pinned me down to the ground, Jogre began stuffing chilli and turmeric powder into my private parts. Thereafter, Sonabai’s daughter-in-law brought a chopper to attack me, however, she spared my life since I knelt before her and begged for my life,” says the complaint.
Her 6-year-old daughter had to borrow a neighbours cell phone and called for help. All the shouting and screaming for help by the daughter got the other neighbours out.
She was taken to the Mapusa District Hospital by the 108 ambulance and after the treatment a complaint was registered.
