Dead body of Puri girl set on fire arrives in Odisha; Dpty CM & health minister pay floral tribute

Bhubaneswar: The body of the 15-year-old girl from Odisha's Puri, who succumbed to her burn injuries at AIIMS-Delhi, was brought to the state on Sunday night, police said.

The minor's body reached the Biju Patnaik International Airport here before being taken to her native place at Balanga in Puri district, amid tight security arrangements, a senior officer said.

Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida and Health Minister Mukesh Mahaling, who were present at the airport here, consoled the girl's father and paid floral tribute to her.

The body of the girl was taken from the national capital by a service flight after the post-mortem examination at the AIIMS-Delhi was conducted earlier in the day, the officer said.

The girl, who was allegedly set on fire by three miscreants at Balanga on July 19, was airlifted to AIIMS-Delhi the next day and breathed her last there on Saturday evening after a 14-day battle for life.

Hours after the teenager’s death, the Odisha Police claimed that there was no other person involved in the incident and requested that no sensational statements be made over the matter.

The girl's father also released a video, claiming that she ended her life due to mental distress. Initially, her mother, in the FIR, had alleged that three people had set the minor on fire near the Bhargavi riverbank.

Keeping in view the sensitivity of the incident and a statewide outrage over the girl's death, the police have made elaborate security arrangements at the airport with around 180 personnel deployed, another officer said.

Police personnel were also deployed at major crossings through which the hearse carrying the girl's mortal remains will pass, he said.

Bhubaneswar DCP Jagmohan Meena said one platoon of force (30 personnel) will provide security to the hearse, while it is being taken from the airport to her native village.

The city police would escort the hearse carrying the minor girl’s body till Uttara Chhak, from where the Puri district police will provide security till her native place.

Former Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president Prasad Harichandan, BJD leader Sanjay Das Burma, BJP leader Samir Ranjan Dash and many others paid tribute to the deceased at the airport.

A number of people also offered prayer (Namaz) at the airport as soon as the girl's body reached Odisha.