Haryana puts on hold reward to braveheart sisters

The Haryana government Thursday said its decision to honour and give cash rewards to two sisters, who reportedly took on youths trying to molest and assault them, has been put on hold for the time being pending a full probe into the incident.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar's officer on special duty Jawahar Yadav told media here Thursday that the state government's earlier announcement that the two sisters would be honoured for their bravery on the Republic Day (Jan 26) has been put on hold.

"The decision will be taken once the investigation into the entire matter is completed. Through the media, the government came to know of the first incident. Now, we have come to know that there are three videos. We don't want to do injustice to anyone. We will take a decision after the final report of the investigation," he said.

Khattar himself said that a fair investigation would be conducted in the incident.

He told media in Rohtak the decision whether the girls would be rewarded or not would be taken after thorough investigation of the incident.

The Haryana government Thursday also reinstated the driver and conductor of the state roadways bus who were suspended earlier for failing to react appropriately when the girls were allegedly molested and assaulted inside the moving bus.

"Till the investigations report comes, status quo will be maintained," Yadav said, adding that the suspension of the bus crew was also put on hold.

Questions have been raised from various quarters about the conduct of the girls, Aarti and Pooja, after another video of their thrashing a youth in a park in Rohtak town emerged. The new video was shot prior to the bus incident.

The new video came just days after their first video went viral, in which they were seen thrashing three youths who they alleged were molesting and assaulting them in a moving Haryana Roadways bus near Rohtak last Friday.

After the video and the incident made national headlines, the three youths were arrested and sent to judicial custody.

The bus driver and the conductor were also suspended by the state transport department on the ground that they neither helped the girls in distress nor did they inform police.

After the youths were arrested, an old woman, who claimed to be a passenger in the same bus, said the youths had not indulged in harassment of the sisters. She claimed that the fight between the boys and the girls started over taking a seat on the bus.

Family members and lawyers of the accused youths claimed that the two sisters were habituated to picking up fights and thrashing boys.

A third video has also emerged in this episode, showing the father of one of the youths beating him up inside the police station premises and forcing him to feel sorry for the incident with the girls.