In a tragic incident, an 18-year-old woman from Datia district in Madhya Pradesh died after she was hit by a train. Her father claimed that she was escaping a group of men who tried to rape her.
According to a report in Hindustan Times, the incident took place at 5:30 am on Monday.
The woman's father told the police that she had gone to relieve herself close to the railway tracks when two men from the village tried to rape her. While trying to escape, he said, she came under the train.
"At present, we can't comment over the reason behind the girl's death. Police have registered a case and are investigating," Datia superintendent of police Irshad Wali told HT.
Open defecation is a major problem in the country, and despite Madhya Pradesh government's best efforts, not much success have been achieved in the state.
A recent report noted how toilets in a Madhya Pradesh district have conveniently been turned into kitchen and pan shops, thanks to machinations of local sarpanches.
"The septic tank of the toilet has not been built to date, rendering it unusable. Our sarpanch had undertaken construction of toilets in our village. We have transferred the money deposited in our account under the scheme to the account of the sarpanch. But he has left the construction unfinished. Hence, we have decided to turn the toilet into kitchen to save space in our home," a villager told Asian Age.
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