Women's Commission member's smiling selfie triggers row in Kerala

Close on the heels of Kerala Women's Commission chairperson M C Josephine's resignation, a member of the commission landed in trouble after she posted a selfie picture of being in a jovial mood while travelling to high range in Idukki district of Kerala to meet the family of a minor girl who was raped and murdered.

Women's Commission member Shahida Kamal has invited widespread criticism on social media after she posted her picture travelling to Vandiperiyar in Idukki to meet the family of a six-year-old girl who was allegedly raped and murdered by local youth. She posted her smiling picture while travelling in a car with the heading 'Traveling to Vandiperiyar'. Vandiperiyar is close to the popular tourist spot Thekkady.

The post invited criticism that the Women's Commission member was on a leisure trip to Vandiperiyar.

Subsequently, Kamal, who is a Congress turned CPM leader, withdrew the post with a clarification that she used to try to suppress sadness with a smile.

The Vandiperiyar rape-murder case is already caught up in a political row as the accused Arjun is a DYFI worker. He was suspected to have sexually abused the child in his neighbourhood several times. She was murdered after she fell unconscious following a sexual assault and her body was hanged in the house.

Meanwhile, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights also registered a case suo motu in the incident and sought a report from the police.