Hyderabad: Not only police officials but also the toll plaza staff failed P. Priyanka Reddy, say the city’s women’s organizations. She was not allowed to wait there for even a few minutes and asked to leave, told that she could not park her bike there. So she moved further away from the toll plaza.
“The toll plaza and the road is a highly sensitive protocol area,” said Indira Shobhan P, an activist. “It is close to the airport. There is always police presence. Was there no patrolling? It was early at 9.30 p.m. How come no one noticed that a girl was waiting with a punctured tyre?”
There is anger at the blame being shifted to the girl rather than the police or the government, which is responsible for law and order. “The highways do not have any repair shops,” Sandhya of the Progressive Organisation for Women said. “A woman has to travel far, and if she is alone and waiting at the toll plaza what is the harm? The government has to look at all the problems a lone woman may face. She cannot take a lift from other vehicles. But can’t she wait at a busy place?”
Though the road was busy with traffic, the young woman fell into the trap of the perpetrators who used the excuse of help with repair. Activists wonder why no one ever noticed the repair vehicle. “It is a tragic incident,” Tripurana Venkatratnam, ex-chairperson of Telangana women’s commission said. “The most dangerous and disturbing trend is that of the bodies being burnt. It is important that the blame game must stop. There is a need for constant awareness among women. The families have to be sensitised that when they get a distress call, they must alert the police emergency numbers or SHE teams. Do not expect the victims to make these calls.”
The National commission for women has constituted an inquiry committee into the incident.
