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BULANDSHAHR: Ahead of sentencing in the brutal gang rape of a woman and her daughter at gunpoint on NH-91 in UP in 2016 which shocked the nation, one of the survivors – then a 14-year-old schoolgirl and now a 23-year-old woman studying law with hopes of becoming a judge – told TOI from an undisclosed location on Sunday that what she and her family endured in the time since the incident was “savage and inhuman” but they stuck together and fought on.”We changed addresses and cities multiple times to avoid recognition and harassment. But every time we were identified and vilified,” she said, breaking down repeate-dly over the course of the conversation. “I remember every face. They’re not human – they are demons,” she said of the continuous nightmares.A day after a court in Bulandshahr convicted five of the men involved in the gang rape, she said it has given them hope. “But it will take a long time – perhaps an eternity – for us to heal. What they did didn’t just violate our bodies – it also destroyed our lives, peace, our future.” Her voice sometimes choking with emotions, she added: “The trauma never leaves you. Nights are the worst. I still wake up frightened.”The family was forced to change houses five times in the past decade. “But how long can we keep hiding our identity from neighbours?” she asked. “Someone comes to know about our past, and it spreads like fire. People start looking at us with contempt. The environment around us turns hostile. Harassers become active. They follow me on the road, pass lewd comments, and even roam around my house. But we did not break. I did not break.”Repeated relocation took a toll on the family financially too. “My father once owned three cars and ran them as taxis. Today, he works night shifts driving someone else’s car,” she said. She added: “I’m the only child and I also wanted to support my parents. My education suffered as we had to change places so many times.” Pursuing a law degree, she said she wants to become a judge some day for the cause of rape survivors like her. Her mother, trying to hold back her tears, said, “We were a normal family then… We had never seen a court or spoken to police. But after that day, our lives changed forever.”Recalling that day, her father told TOI how helpless he was. “We were supposed to attend my grandmother’s funeral. It was around 1am when, on the highway, I heard a loud bang. We paused thinking something had hit our vehicle. All of a sudden, 7 to 8 men emerged from the bushes and overpowered us at gunpoint.” He added: “My wife, daughter, brother, his wife and his young son were all there. They dragged my wife and daughter into the bushes. My daughter kept pleading before them. I was right there, but couldn’t save them.”That incident cost them everything, he said. “I had to look for places where nobody knew us. Finding a job became a huge struggle. Today, I barely earn Rs 12,000-15,000 a month by driving someone else’s car.”The gruesome crime happened on July 29, 2016, when the family’s vehicle was intercepted near a village, while they were travelling to Shahjahanpur from Noida.
