I'm sorry my child: Kamal Haasan tweets apology to Kathua rape victim

Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan has put out a poignant message on the Kathua rape and murder that seems to have struck a chord on Twitter. The message, partly framed as a personal apology to the 8-year-old victim, also takes a stinging shot at the apparent apathy the case has been met with.

"Does it have 2 b ur own daughter fr u 2 understand? She could've been mine. I feel angry as a man, father & a citizen fr failing A$#%," read Kamal's tweet. "I m sorry my child v didn't make this country safe enough fr U. I'll fight fr justice at least fr future kids like u. V mourn u & won't forget u," he added.

The tweet seems to have found resonance, receiving about 10000 'likes' and 3500 retweets in under two hours.

There were some who agreed with Kamal, and welcomed his statement. 

 

Well said. Sincerely pray the criminals get the justice deserved. Soon! — Fiza (@fizahaq) April 13, 2018

They are not humans . We cannot even call them beasts. Even beasts have some ethics. What a cruelty. It is beyond my imagination. My heart goes out for you child. Hope you find peace in heaven. — manjula (@pmanjula) April 13, 2018

 

Predictably, the tweet also sparked a massive firestorm of debate over the topic, which is already fraught with communal overtones.

The victim, all of 8 years old, had been kidnapped, drugged, raped and murdered. Some of this had apparently happened in a temple. The victim was from a nomadic community, and the perpetrators claim they had initially abducted her to scare her family, before things got out of hand. Because of these and many other factors, the case has assumed explosive communal overtones in Jammu and Kashmir. 

The case, combined with the ongoing investigation into the allegation of rape against a BJP MLA in Uttar Pradesh have sparked massive outrage. The anger has not just remained limited to social media. Congress chief Rahul Gandhi led a midnight protests demanding justice for the victims.