Moga: The day-long shutdown seeking the registration of a criminal case against owners of Orbit bus in which a teenage girl was allegedly molested and pushed to death, evoked a mixed response on Monday.
The protest, called by opposition Congress, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) and other social organisations saw few commercial establishments shut their shops, while it was business as usual for others at other pockets in the area.
However, Orbit buses remained off the roads on Monday.
The protesters have also demanded a CBI probe into the incident.
Meanwhile, expelled AAP leader Yogendra Yadav met with the victims’ family on Monday and expressed solidarity with them.
Former chief minister and deputy leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Amarinder Singh is also expected to visit the family later in the day.
An uneasy calm prevailed in Moga as the girl’s death has taken political overtones even as ruling SAD-BJP brokered a compromise with the aggrieved family.
Ending a four-day protest on Sunday against the ruling Badal family, father of the victim accepted Punjab government’s offer of compensation and a job and also agreed for the post-mortem and cremation of his daughter.
The body of the teen-aged girl was consigned to flames at her village Lande Ke amid tight security.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal had described the incident as “intolerable” and “painful” while the police said all the four accused had been arrested.
The girl was pushed off a moving bus last week along with her mother after they resisted molestation attempts. The bus belongs to Orbit Aviation, the company owned by relatives of Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal.
The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) demanded on Monday a minimum of Rs.1 crore compensation for the family of the 13-year-old who died after she was molested and pushed out of a bus in Punjab.
They also demanded that the mother of the victim Chhinder Kaur be give proper medical treatment by the Punjab government and that FIRs be immediately registered against owners and management of Orbit transport company which is owned Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, a release said here.
The 13-year-old was cremated on Sunday evening at her native village in Punjab.
Buses of the Orbit transport company were taken off the roads across Punjab on Saturday following orders from Sukhbir Badal.
AIDWA General Secretary Jagmati Sangwan, who led a delegation to the house of the victim, said strict norms to ensure the security of women should be put in place for private transport operators immediately and immediate penal action be taken against those who fail to ensure safety and security of women in their vehicles.
The delegation met the family of the 13-year-old Dalit girl, including her father Sukhdev Singh and her aunt Kirandeep, along with others.
Earlier, Sangwan also addressed the people which are staging a continuing protest outside the hospital where Chhinder Kaur, mother of the victim, is undergoing treatment. Kaur was badly injured when she and her daughter were thrown out of a moving bus.
