Give me justice or let me die: Desperate plea of acid attack victim who was left blind and deaf by
the three men who had 'sexually abused her'
 |
| BEFORE AND AFTER |
·
Sonali Mukherjee's face was disfigured forever in
2003, when she was just 17 years old, by intruders who broke into her home in
Dhanbad, Jharkhand.
·
Her assailants, who had allegedly been sexually
abusing her for years, poured the acid over her while she was sleeping.
·
Her treatment - 22 operations and several
consultations - has already run into hundreds of thousands of rupees.
·
Her family was forced to sell ancestral land, her
mother's jewellery and is practically penniless. The operations have only
helped give her disfigured face some shape.
·
Her attackers included a
40-year-old married man, and an 18-year-old. The teenager was let off on
account of being a juvenile, the other two were convicted for nine years, but
appealed to a higher court and got out in just four
· The 27-year-old is
begging ministers to help her
'I need at least 15 lakhs to look even remotely
human and have my eyesight restored,' she said. She described
approaching the government as a last resort. 'I have knocked on all doors. I
have met three chief ministers [Shibu Soren, Arjun Munda and Madhu Koda] and
three MLAs. Let alone justice, I haven't received any monetary help from the
state.'
THE HELPING HANDS
1)Her saviour may now have come in the
form of plastic surgeon Anant Sinha, however, who stepped forward to offer free
medical treatment at his hospital for Miss Mukherjee. 'I can understand the plight of the
victim but she need not worry,' said Dr Sinha. 'I will treat her free of cost
at my hospital and if needed even give her a job at my hospital for
sustenance.'
2)
Send your cheques to: Chandi Das MukherjeeAccount Number: 0612000103217964Punjab National Bank, New DelhiOr contact her brother at: 09437638600
'The law against acid attackers needs to be
made
tougher. Otherwise we will have many
more Sonalis.'
