Surfers flock to pay tribute to Aarushi

‘Into your hands, O Lord, We humbly entrust our sister, In this life you embraced her with your tender love; Deliver her now from every evil, And bid her enter eternal rest.’

With these words, a Facebook community was created by friends of murdered Noida teenager Aarushi Talwar. The community now has over 14,000 members, each describing how they feel for Aarushi or commenting on how the crime brought them together.

It is striking how people from different age groups are following the case, as shown by the Hindustan Times-C Fore survey. This leads to a dilemma on the best ways of dealing with children who are less mature yet overly curious. Is it wise to acquaint them with the harsh realities of life?

“It is our responsibility to talk to our children about the case. They are exposed to various sources of information and will get to know about it. Why can’t it be from parents then?” asked Neelakshi Barua, mother of Neesha, one of Aarushi’s friends.

Meanwhile, city schools are gearing up for the new session, the first time when students will officially meet after the murder.

“I will talk to my students and hold a prayer meeting on the first day,” said Darshan Sodhi, Aarushi’s class teacher.

Added N.M. Williams, principal, Mount Carmel School: “We won’t discuss Aarushi’s case but will address related queries.”

(With inputs from Harsha Baruah and Sonam Chauhan)