When she was brought to the AIIMS, Delhi on January 18, her arms were broken at multiple places, she had severe head injury (a fractured skull), possibly caused by being thrown against the wall, cheeks were branded with hot iron and above all, she had human bite marks all over her tiny little body!
Baby Falak, as christened by her care-givers in the hospital (meaning—‘The Sky’), couldn’t win her battle for life. Despite of all the efforts of the medical examiners at AIIMS, Falak breathed her last on 15th March, 2012, following a fatal cardiac arrest, a third and last one in 3 months of her unspeakable suffering. After a routine post- mortem which is important as this was a ‘medico-legal’ case according to the doctors, Falak’s tiny body was handed over to her mother, Munni, a Rajasthani woman, entrapped in a human trafficking business, who later had cremated the toddler’s tiny remains at the Ferozshah Kotla burial ground.
Primary investigation suggested that the baby died of a fatal cardiac arrest, precisely due to Cardiac Arrhythmia, which happens when the heart beats too quickly. Falak had been initially recovering from the trauma and was responding to the treatment being given to her. She had contacted Meningitis, underwent 5 counts of surgeries, and also suffered two heart attacks. But she had been recovered from all of them. Many people from abroad, after being moved by the tiny child’s plight, had offered to adopt her when she is fully recovered. But alas! Who has ever dreamt that Falak will be no more within days? On the day of her demise, she was sleeping silently and was expected to be released from the hospital soon, when she suddenly suffered a cardiac arrest, and was gone within 40 minutes.
Who ‘killed’ the two years old baby? At first, it has been thought that Falak was the child of the teenage girl who had brought her to AIIMS Delhi, who also allegedly claimed that. She also claimed that Falak had fallen from the bed and suffered the injuries, an inconceivable claim, which the doctors at AIIMS did not believe, because the nature of the injuries did not match with the description provided by the girl. Especially, how come a baby would bore human bite marks, if she falls from the bed only? This part of the investigation remained mystery. The doctors called the police instead who started a full-fledged investigation into the matter.
The teenage girl has been arrested and put in a juvenile home, where she has been interrogated by the police and repeatedly interviewed by the members of Child Welfare Committee. It has been revealed by time that the man, namely Rajkumar alias Mohammad Dilsahd, with whom the teenager was living with, had brought Falak to their home ‘to be raised as their child’. The girl, it has been learnt, had eloped with that man a year ago, who has become the prime suspect in Baby Falak case. The girl also claimed that the man had ‘sexually abused’ her. The investigators, as well as the doctors believe that the alleged abuse may have traumatized the girl to such an extent that compelled her into battering the child she was raising as her own daughter! The teenager has revealed that she used to beat the baby whenever she cried. Sometimes she even used to bit the tiny body! It was apparent from her description that Sunita, a child herself entrapped in sex trade, has taken out her ‘frustration’ on a defenseless baby girl.
Baby Falak’s story has become more complicated with time as it has been revealed that the man, with whom the teenager had been staying, is married and has moved with his family in Mumbai. After a massive manhunt, the police have arrested ten people related to the baby’s untimely demise. Amongst them, there were two women pimps who had brought teenage Sunita into the world of ‘give and take’. Falak’s biological mother, Munni, is a domestic helper who has been entrapped in human trafficking too by the alleged suspect. Why she gave her babies away, still remained mystery. It has been learnt that Laxmi, one of those pimps had influenced Munni to leave her husband and get married for the second time to a Rajasthani man. It has also been learnt that Falak was not the only child of Munni, she had two siblings. Her brother has been traced from Delhi and sister from Bihar, when a search operation was launched after her death!
Falak’s ‘battered baby syndrome’ has surprised the doctors and the investigators as well as the people of India. Dr. Sumit Sinha from Delhi AIIMS said in a revelation, ‘We see bad cases on a daily basis. But I have never seen this kind of a 'battered baby condition’... with the intention of injury.’ Doctors have also suggested that her ‘battered baby syndrome’ shows she had received the injuries from a ‘close relative’!The mystery of human bite marks all over the tiny, little body remained unsolved till date.
Baby Falak’s unfortunate death has brought the issue of ‘child sex racket’ into broad daylight. After her death Sunita, the teenager who had allegedly claimed to be the child’s mother has revealed her everyday trauma after being dragged into sex-trade by her so-called ‘boyfriend’, who after saving her from her own monster of a father, had brought her out of her own home to live with him. Sunita was lodged at a juvenile home after bringing ‘badly beaten’ Falak to the AIIMS. Falak’s story had made everybody shiver. What about Sunita, a 14 years old child who has been entrapped in sex-trade for months? Unfortunately, nobody has shed tears for the teenage girl who is trying to get out of the mental and physical trauma till date.
After a charge of ‘culpable homicide’ had been slapped against the poor girl, she is now going through a counselling session, initiated by some social workers from Delhi’s Child Welfare Committee. Sunita is revealing day by day the sordid tale of the ghastly business which makes minor girls to sell their bodies to at least seven men everyday. If they fail to do say, they are forced to have sex with more men on the very next day. Sunita used to maintain a dairy containing the names of some girls and the hotels in Mahipalpur. Strangely enough, the police in Delhi have got all the information about the child sex-racket throughout the city, but they seem to have certain apathy towards it as they have not even initiated a primary investigation into the matter!
When the justice is delayed, it is denied. India is not witnessing it for the first time. The question is, how many lives will be put to an end mercilessly before the ‘justice’ is served?
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_Falak
http://ibnlive.in.com/news/falak-case-abused-raped-teen-took-frustration-out/228163-3.html
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/child-sex-rackets-in-delhi-hotels-exposed/1/179243.html
Suchetana Chakraborty
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