By IANS,
Thiruvananthapuram: The father of a teenaged girl, who died in Kerala’s Kottayam district in 2004 after alleged sexual exploitation, Saturday protested outside the state secretariat here to seek justice and mark her sixth death anniversary.
Surendran, the father of the victim from Kiliroor village, demanded that Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan should honour his word given in 2006 to punish the guilty.
The case, which came to be known as the Kiliroor sex scandal, involved the teenaged girl’s sexual exploitation by numerous people after promising her roles in films and TV serials.
When the girl died Nov 13, 2004 following complications after delivering a baby girl, Achuthanandan, who was the leader of opposition then, promised during the 2006 assembly election campaign that if he came to power those responsible for the girl’s exploitation and subsequent death would be put behind bars.
Surendran, who staged a sit-in in front of the state secretariat Saturday, sought to highlight that no progress had been made in the case despite the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) looking into it.
“I don’t have any faith in the CBI. Achuthanandan has another six months in his tenure (as chief minister) and my wish and hope is that he will do justice,” he said.
“I hope he does something in the next six months,” said Surendran.
The assembly polls in Kerala are likely to be held before May next year.
The teenaged victim’s daughter is now six years old and lives with Surendran and his wife.
“We are poor and can’t afford to take care of the girl. What we expect from the government is some sort of financial assistance for her future,” said Surendran.
Last year, he was arrested and later let off after he tried to stage a protest in front of Achuthanandan’s official residence.