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J&K acid attack victim admitted to Delhi hospital

January 04, 2013 23:28 IST

The acid attack victim, who received severe facial burns and damage to her left eye in an acid attack on January 2, was on Friday flown to Delhi for restorative medical intervention at Apollo hospital even as the city centre Lal Chowk shut for two hours in protest against the attack.

The treatment of the victim has been sponsored by the noted Kashmiri Pandit surgeon, Dr Sameer Kaul. The state government also woke up to offer to bear the treatment expenses of the victim.

"The state government has put in place all required arrangements to seek best medical treatment to the acid victim at New Delhi," an official spokesman said.

"On the directions of Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Minister of State for Home Nasir Aslam Wani is personally overseeing these arrangements at New Delhi."

He said that government would provide all possible medical treatment to the affected girl. He said police has already apprehended the culprit and would be brought to justice for severe punishment. The opposition People's Democratic Party on Friday demanded a government job for the acid attack victim.

The party chief spokesperson Naeem Akhtar said that the acid attack had severely jeopardised the life of a young lady who taught in a private school.

"For her rehabilitation it was necessary that the government came forward with appropriate measures and the minimum it could do was to provide an appropriate job to her," Akhtar said.

He said that the young lady, who has lost vision in one eye, her disability would entitle her for a preferential treatment in getting a government job. "But in view of the devastating incident she faced it would be necessary to provide her a job," he added.

A shutdown was observed for two hours in the city centre against the attack and local traders staged a protest demanding stern punishment to the accused.

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar