13-year-old Dalit Girl Commits Suicide After Starving For Two Days in UP’s Lakhimpur Kheri

Lucknow: A 13-year-old Dalit girl reportedly committed suicide after starving for two-days in Nighasan area of Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri. The SDM has started investigating the matter. The family of the girl used to live in the outer area of Nighasan where families troubled by the erosion of land used to live. The father of the deceased girl, Chote Lal passed away some time ago and the family was run by her mother Jagrana who works as a daily-wage labourer. Jagrana used to stay in a hut along with her three kids and the family was facing acute food shortage for some time.

“There was no grain in the house and she had gone to borrow some food, in the meanwhile her 13-year-old daughter got some chapattis from the neighbourhood. She wanted to share the food with her younger brother but her other sister also insisted on eating the food. Estranged by the hunger and the situation, she hanged herself,” girl’s mother Jagrana said.

The girl was later taken to the district hospital where she was declared dead by the doctors. However, SDM Akhilesh Yadav said that the family is poor but they have a ration card and ration for the month of January was taken by the family. Also, the SDM has asked Nayab Tehsildar for a detailed report of the incident.

Although the Administration is not accepting that her death was due to hunger and poverty but circumstances are clearly indicating what led the girl to commit suicide. Even SDM Akhilesh Yadav is accepting that the family received ration for the month of January, which means the family was waiting for February’s ration.

According to the villagers, Jagrana was not getting the widow pension which she should have got after the death of her husband. Jagrana was taking care of her three children by working on daily wages. The SDM might have sent his report to the DM but there was no mention of Jagrana not getting the widow pension.

The sad story of Jagrana started when she lost her house due to flood, then she lost her husband and now she lost her daughter, allegedly, due to hunger. Jagrana had four daughters and one of them was married some time back, post which she was laden with debt too.