Family of accused at risk of being ostracised in Ghamroj

GURUGRAM: Beyond the developed facade of urban Gurugram lies the sleepy village of Ghamroj in Sohna.

The rather underdeveloped village is an indication of the backwardness of the region. This area is not only among the poorer regions of the district, but also of Haryana.

Having been dependant on the government for longer than necessary, the residents are mostly thriving on community support.

This tenet of survival may soon be out of reach for the family of Ashok Kumar, the culprit in the murder of

seven-year-old Pradhyuman Thakur.

The heinous murder and attempted sexual assault, for which he has been arrested, has already resulted in lawyers submitting a written declaration that they will not fight his case.

The anger further seeped into Kumar's household, when the 'panchayat' in Ghamroj village and it was decided that if Kumar is pronounced guilty, his family will face social boycott and no sympathy will be shown to them.

The ostracization of Kumar's family is set further increase their financial difficulties, where the man of the house used to earn Rs 7,000 as a bus conductor. His wife, meanwhile, works as a sweeper in another school.

At a time when most people have already judged Kumar to be guilty, his family still backs him and claim he is being made a scapegoat in the high profile case.

Having seen his situation in the media, the family believes that he is being beaten by police and made to confess forcibly.

Gurugram Police have sought seven days time for completing the investigation and filing a charge-sheet.

Meanwhile, many parents, including Pradhyuman's father, believe that there is more than what meets the eye.

"My son was murdered in a span of 10 minutes. It does not surely look to be a spontaneous act and there may be a possibility of it being a pre-planned attack," said Varun Thakur.