Laxmi

#43/100 in #100extraordinarywomen

Laxmi, who chooses to go only by her first name, is an Indian campaigner with Stop Acid Attacks and a TV host. She is an acid attack survivor and speaks for the rights of acid attack victims. She was attacked in 2005 at age 15, by a 32-year-old man whose advances she had rejected. She is also an active advocate against acid attacks and has taken her fight forward by gathering 27,000 signatures for a petition to curb acid sales, and taking that cause to the Indian Supreme Court. Her petition led the Supreme Court to order the central and state governments to regulate the sale of acid, and the Parliament to make prosecutions of acid attacks easier to pursue. She is currently the director of Chhanv Foundation, a NGO dedicated to help the survivors of acid attacks in India. 

Her story is that of amazing grit and indomitable will. Laxmi was born in 1990 in New Delhi in a middle-class family. Her face and other body parts were disfigured in the said acid attack. A minor then, Laxmi was attacked with acid by three persons near Tughlaq road in New Delhi as she had refused to marry one of them. She spotted 32-year-old Naeem Khan, one of her friend’s brothers, as she was shopping in Khan Market, South Delhi, but suddenly, the woman he was with pushed me to the ground and a cold liquid splashed across Laxmi's face, causing an unimaginable burning sensation. Laxmi rolled around on the dirty city street in a desperate bid to stop the pain until eventually a local taxi driver came forward to help, throwing water over her face. The taxi driver rushed Laxmi to nearby Safdarjang Hospital, shouting “acid attack” encouraging people to move out of the way. It was only then that Laxmi realised what had happened. She said: “I felt as if someone had set my whole body on fire. The skin was just coming off, it was like dripping, from my hands and from my face.” She has undergone nine major surgeries to try and reduce the burns to her skin since the horrific attack in a busy market in 2005 - and the last left her on a ventilator for four days.

Now, Laxmi feels an overwhelming strength to change the acid attacks that continue to happen in India in a bid to help her daughter grow up in a safer country. She later filed a PIL seeking framing of a new law, or amendment to the existing criminal laws like IPC, Indian Evidence Act and CrPC for dealing with the offence, besides asking for compensation. She had also pleaded for a total ban on sale of acid, citing increasing number of incidents of such attacks on women across the country. During a hearing in April, the Centre had assured the Supreme Court of India that it will work with the state governments to formulate a plan before the next hearing. However, when the Centre failed to produce a plan, the Supreme Court warned that it will intervene and pass orders if the government failed to frame a policy to curb the sale of acid in order to prevent chemical attacks. “Seriousness is not seen on the part of government in handling the issue,” the bench headed by Justice RM Lodha had said. The court also directed the Centre to convene a meeting of Chief Secretaries of all states and Union Territories to hold discussion for enacting a law to regulate the sale of acids and a policy for treatment, compensation and care and rehabilitation of such victims.

Meanwhile, in 2013, the Supreme Court ruled in favour of Laxmi and Rupa’s plea, thereby creating a fresh set of restrictions on the sale of acid. Under the new regulations, acid could not be sold to any individual below the age of 18 years. One is also required to furnish a photo identity card before buying acid. Laxmi claims that not much has changed on the ground, despite all the regulations. “Acid is freely available in shops. Our own volunteers have gone and purchased acid easily. In fact, I have myself purchased acid,” she said. “We have launched a new initiative called ‘Shoot Acid’. By means of the Right to Information Act, we are trying to acquire data concerning the sale of acid in every district. We intend to present the information collected through this initiative before the Supreme Court to apprise them of the situation on the ground.”

On personal front, she had once given up on finding a partner thanks to the stares and comments she received in public left her too ashamed to leave the home, but went on to find love through her campaigning work to stop other women suffering the same fate. Laxmi began working with the charity Stop Acid Attacks and through it met founder Alok Dixit, with whom she found love. Although the attack has left its mental scars, she said she is no longer ashamed of the physical scars. She said: “After the attack, I never thought I would ever find a soulmate. I had lost hope. But in Alok, I couldn't have found anyone better. He understood the kind of pain I was in. He understood what I had been going through. He wasn’t like other men my age – he was completely committed to the campaign and making a change in life, and I fell for that. I never told him, though. But then three months after we first met, while we were working one afternoon, Alok admitted he had feelings for me. He said he’d fallen for my courage and spirit.” The couple, however, are challenging society norms by not getting married. “We have decided to live together until we die. But we are challenging the society by not getting married,” Laxmi said. Alok added: “We are not going to follow the norms that the society approves of. We will prove that our love does not need a name. Our love is about understanding and support.” Laxmi and Alok continue to work together helping and supporting many survivors of acid attacks in India, and last year they launched the Sheroes Hangout, which is a café, in Agra, run by victims of acid attacks. 

Laxmi and Alok are now proud parents of a baby girl whom they have named Pihu. Although thrilled, she revealed that she was terrified of how her child would react to her injuries. As her daughter Pihu celebrates her first birthday, Laxmi said: “I was overjoyed but I started to worry – how would my child react to my face? Would they be scared of me, or find it difficult to bond with me? I tried to enjoy my pregnancy but these thoughts would fill my head and I worried how I would cope once I gave birth.” But when Pihu arrived the following April, Laxmi's fears became a distant memory. “The moment we locked eyes, I loved her more than anything in the world. Sometimes I struggle to believe something so beautiful is a part of me – it’s a happiness I never thought I’d feel,” she said. “I never imagined that I would become a mother. It’s nature’s gift. It has brought inexplicable happiness. I see her and think how can something so beautiful be my daughter? It’s a happiness I never thought I’d feel.” Now, Laxmi feels an overwhelming strength to change the acid attacks that continue to happen in India in a bid to help her daughter grow up in a safer country. She added: “I’ve already decided that, when the time is right, I will tell Pihu about what happened to me. It's not a nice story and I worry about that day. But I will not tell her my story until she asks. Only when she asks me why I look the way I do, will I tell her my real life story. I don’t want her to hear about it from anyone else. It’s my story and I will have to explain to her what happened to me. I just hope my charity work will help protect my daughter from any type of attack in the future. She will see survivors throughout her life on every level, daily. And she will witness the struggles her own parents go through to build a better future but we will not give up, we will keep fighting for change a better life.”

In March 2014, Laxmi was invited to the International Woman of Courage Celebration in Washington DC by Michelle Obama. She was one of 10 women honoured for courageous and selfless efforts advocating for peace, justice, human rights and women’s equality – often in the face of great personal risk. And on her return home, she was offered her own weekly talk show (called Udaan) for acid-attack survivors on Indian TV channel News Express. Then, in January she was named as the star of an India designer's clothing campaign called the 'Face of Courage' and said she wants to show other women who have been attacked to have courage. She was also chosen as the NDTV Indian of the Year (LIC Unsung Hero of the Year) for the year 2013. 

Source: Google search and Wikipedia.