The Good Girls: A Double Tragedy In A Quiet Village

Hanging from a mango tree, on the edge of their village in Uttar Pradesh, are the bodies of two girls.

It’s May 27, 2014, and the sun is just beginning to rise in India’s north. It’s already blisteringly hot, the air thick and overbearing. A man, a member of the village, is the first to see them. The two girls who went missing last night. 

Lalli is 14, her lifeless body beside her 16-year-old cousin Padma. They were inseparable in life, neighbours who were more like sisters. Their parents have been desperately trying to find them. They will eventually be called to this orchard, and they will see what became of their daughters. 

But when they find them, they do not take their bodies down. Their mistrust of police is so great that they wait for a man they trust to arrive. They think that the police will ensure these girls are forgotten. Their deaths ignored by the justice system. Instead, the women of the family guard their bodies as they are exposed to the heat, factors that would make it increasingly difficult to determine what happened. 

On that day, in May 2014, photographs are taken of a scene that is shared all around the world. 

These girls’ lives mattered. 

And with a spotlight on this small village in India, it’s critical they determine what happened.

CREDITS

Guest: Sonia Faleiro 

Host: Jessie Stephens

Producer: Gia Moylan

Audio Producer: Ian Camilleri

CONTACT US

Tell us what you think of the show via email at [email protected]  

Join our closed Facebook community to discuss this episode. Just search True Crime Conversations on Facebook or follow this link https://bit.ly/tcc-group 

If any of the contents in this episode have caused distress, know that there is help available via Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mamamia acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.

Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribe

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.