Miraculous Survival: Punjab Teen Reappears After Father Threw Her Into Canal With Bound Hands

She was pushed into the canal on September 29

Chandigarh:

In a remarkable development from Punjab, a 17-year-old girl from Ferozepur district has resurfaced months after her father allegedly threw her into a canal. The teenager, who is the eldest of four sisters and had dropped out of school, addressed the media on Sunday, recounting her miraculous escape and making an unexpected appeal for her father's release from prison.

The distressing family incident occurred on September 29 in the presence of her mother and three younger siblings. Her father, Surjit Singh, questioning her "character," bound her hands with ropes before pushing her into a canal. He documented this horrific act on video, which subsequently went viral online.

The video captured him saying "Chal mar (go die)" as he pushed her into the water. When his wife screamed for assistance, he coldly responded, "Marne de (let her die)," and added "Bye bye" as the current carried the girl away.

Following a complaint from the girl's cousin, Ferozepur City Police promptly registered a murder case and apprehended Singh, who has remained in judicial custody at the central jail since the incident.

During her emotional media appearance, the teen explained how she survived the ordeal. She revealed that the ropes binding her wrists miraculously loosened in the canal's powerful current. As she was swept downstream, her head collided with an iron bar protruding from the water - a painful impact that ultimately became her salvation. She managed to grasp the bar and make her way to the shore.

Three individuals passing by noticed her and pulled her to safety. While she did not disclose where she had taken refuge for approximately two months, she mentioned being ill and receiving medical treatment during that time.

The teenager has now pleaded with authorities to release her father, stating, "My younger sisters have no one else to look after them." She claimed that her mother had encouraged her intoxicated father during the attack when he was already enraged.

She has also requested police protection, expressing distrust toward her relatives.

Law enforcement officials are continuing their investigation and will likely reduce the charges from murder to attempted murder based on the girl's testimony.

Senior police officer Bhupinder Singh described her safe return as "very good news."

"The girl stated she was initially frightened and in shock. Due to a head injury, certain details remained unclear to her, which explains her delayed return," he explained.

"Initially, the father himself recorded a video, and based on that evidence, a case under Section 302 (murder) was registered against him. However, now that the girl has been found alive, appropriate legal sections will be applied according to her statements, and further proceedings will follow accordingly," he added.