15-year-old Kusum is receiving love from all quarters | Her friends are dedicating special videos, poems to herBraveheart’s hospital room a cynosure of all eyes

Aakanksha N Bhardwaj

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, September 3

Room number 115 at a private city hospital has become a cynosure of all eyes.

Reason: Braveheart Kusum is receiving treatment here.

Just enter the hospital and you don’t even have to name Kusum, just say the girl who…, and the hospital staff directs you towards the room where Kusum (fondly called Neha by her parents) is getting treatment for the past four days, after she was attacked by two bike-borne youths by a datar, following which she gave them a tough fight. Such is her admiration, that she has become famous because of her bravery.

‘Feeling special’

Kusum has become everyone’s favourite. Everybody in the hospital knows about her and with bigwigs coming to meet her and interviewers around, Kusum shares: “It’s a special feeling.”

“Mujhe itne bouquet aur flowers mil gaye hain ki yaad bhi nahee kis kis ne die,” she shares. “I have been getting several calls on a daily basis from my friends. Even my classmates have dedicated songs and poems for me,” she said.

‘Scared of injection’

On being asked if she was worried about her arm that was attacked with a sharp weapon, the fearless girl replied: “I wasn’t worried about anything else, but the pain of injection gave me the chills! I did not lose my calm when I was attacked, but I have to admit, when I saw the injection, I was scared.”

She doesn’t want to remember what happened with her that day. “Jo ho gaya vo ho gaya, main uske bare mein sochna nahee chahti, achhi baton pe dhyan de rahi hu. (What happened has happened, I don’t even want to think about it. I am focusing on only good and positive things), the small wonder expressed.

Accused still on the run

Jatinder Kumar, SHO division number 2, said Avinash Kumar (22), the accused who was arrested, has again been sent to one-day police remand. He is the main accused, who hit the victim with a sharp weapon and her arm was injured badly. He has been charged under Sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 379 B of the IPC.

The other accused, identified as Vinod Kumar, is a resident of railway quarters. The SHO said his parents were no more and he doesn’t stay at one place and keeps on changing location, which is why it was getting difficult for the police to nab him. “We have already raided his relative’s home, but he wasn’t found anywhere,” the SHO said, adding that both accused had met in the jail and that is how they started doing snatchings together.