Acid attack survivor wins crores in quiz show

November 30, 2012

Sonali_MukherjeeNew Delhi, November 30: Four months ago, acid attack victim Sonali Mukherjee just wanted to die to escape her suffering.

Now, the 27-year-old is a rupee millionaire after appearing on 'Kaun Banega Crorepati' and plans to use her experience to help combat the heinous crime of acid violence, which kills hundreds of people every year, most of them women.

"I've had 22 operations and nine more are remaining, so that at least my eyes and ears are functional," Mukherjee told the Times of India. "If I recover, I want to help people like me. In my nine years of struggle, I have faced a lot. I know the kind of difficulties we have to face, with no help from any quarter."

Nine years ago, three men broke into Mukherjee's home in the middle of the night as she slept and poured acid over her face - burning her skin, melting away her eyelids, nose, mouth and ears and leaving her partly deaf and blind - simply because she spurned their sexual advances.

Left with 70 percent burns and severe disfigurement, Mukherjee, who was a 17-year-old college student in the central Indian town of Dhanbad at the time, endured years of suffering, confined to her home. Her family could not afford the expensive reconstructive surgery she needed to help her live a normal life.

Her three attackers were released after serving three years in prison.

Unable to continue what she said was "half a life with half a face", Mukherjee begged the government to allow her to kill herself. Euthanasia is illegal in India.

MEDIA STAR

In the weeks that followed, Mukherjee's story made national headlines and there was an outpouring of public support for her. Local charities and private hospitals came forward offering to fund the surgery she needed.

The turning point came this weekend, when she was invited to appear as a contestant on the Indian quiz show " Kaun Banega Crorepati" hosted by popular Bollywood star Amitabh Bachchan, also known as Big B. "I could never imagine that I would meet big people. Meeting Big B was the best thing. He is such a big star, but is so humble and down-to-earth," she said.

Wearing sunglasses and with a red scarf wrapped round her head and partly covering her face, she was guided onto the stage by Bachchan and former Miss Universe Lara Dutta, and given a standing ovation by the audience.

Confidently answering questions on everything from botany and cooking to political history, the young woman scooped 2.5 million rupees with her celebrity partner Dutta.

Mukherjee plans to use her winnings to complete her surgery, but says this is not the end of her struggle. With her new-found celebrity status, she wants to speak out against acid violence, most common in countries such as Cambodia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan and India, where social structures remain deeply patriarchal.

Around 1,500 acid attacks are reported globally each year, 80 percent of them on women, says the London-based charity Acid Survivors Trust International, though it also says this is a gross under-estimate as most victims are scared to speak out.

"I appeal to the government to ensure that these cases are not repeated," said Mukherjee. "Make a separate law, which is not just on paper, but is followed," she said.


Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
March 30,2020

Thiruvananthapuram, Mar 30: Kerala reported 32

fresh cases of coronavirus on Monday, with the worst affected Kasaragod district alone accounting for 17 cases.

Kannur reported 15 cases, while Wayanad and Idukki reported two each, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told reporters here after a COVID-19 review meeting.

Of the 32 cases, 17 had come from abroad and 15 had been infected through contact.

A total of 213 people are presently under treatment in Kerala.

At least 1.50 lakh people are under surveillance in the state and 623 are in isolation wards of various hospitals.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
Agencies
January 6,2020

Lucknow, Jan 6: Undeterred by the large scale protests that claimed as many as 20 lives in the state, Uttar Pradesh government has started the process of implementing the controversial Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

According to sources in the government, the district magistrates have been directed to identify the migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, who have been living in their districts.

Sources said that the state home department has given oral instructions to the district magistrates. ''No written orders have been issued,'' said a senior official here preferring anonymity.

The official said that the district magistrates would be preparing a list containing names of those minorities, who had migrated from these countries following their persecution and had been living without obtaining the citizenship of India.

According to sources, the government expected that the migrants, who could be eligible for the Indian citizenship in accordance with the CAA, could be more in number in the districts, including Rampur, Ghaziabad, Shahjahanpur, Lucknow and some others.

''The list will be sent to the union home ministry,'' the official added.

Sources said that the state government will also inform the centre about the ''illegal Muslim migrants'' for their ultimate deportation to their countries of origin.

Different parts of UP had witnessed large scale violence last month during the protests against the CAA. At least 20 people, mostly youngsters, were killed allegedly in police firing and many others were injured. The state government had denied the charge. 

Alleged police excesses during and after the protests triggered a nationwide outrage with several rights organisations and activists slamming the BJP government and demanding a high-level probe into the allegations.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
Agencies
February 25,2020

New Delhi, Feb 25: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday told a meeting of Delhi Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and party leaders that "professional assessment" is that the violence in north-east Delhi has been "spontaneous".

He also said adequate forces have been already deployed in affected areas even as he urged political parties to avoid provocative speeches and statements which could flare up the situation and desist from rumour-mongering. He also instructed Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik to re-activate local peace committees. 

"Shah noted that the professional assessment is that the violence in the capital has been spontaneous. He expressed confidence in Delhi Police and said that the force has shown maximum restraint to get the situation under control," a statement issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said.

However, on Monday, government sources had claimed that violence in the national capital "appeared to be orchestrated" to coincide with the high-profile visit. A PTI report from Hyderabad on Tuesday also quoted Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy as saying that the violence in Delhi has been perpetrated intentionally and the Narendra Modi government would not tolerate such incidents. 

While Shah said adequate forces have been deployed, there were also reports that the Delhi Police Commissioner told MHA top brass that it did not have adequate forces to control the violence that erupted in north-east Delhi. However, Delhi Police later tweeted that the Commissioner has denied that "no such information was given to MHA" and such reports were "totally baseless". 

Urging parties to avoid provocative speeches and statements which could flare up the situation, the statement said, Shah expressed confidence in Delhi Police and said that the force has shown maximum restraint to get the situation under control.

Appealing to all to maintain restraint and desist from rumour-mongering while instructing the Delhi Police Commissioner to re-activate local peace committees, Shah said Delhi's borders with Uttar Pradesh and Haryana have been under surveillance for the last three days. 

Shah also urged parties to ask their local leaders to hold meetings in sensitive areas and instructed senior police officers to visit vulnerable police stations at the earliest

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.