The family of 12-year-old Anushka Nandi, who died from electrocution along with friend Sneha Banik after one of them touched a light post in a flooded street in Dum Dum in Kolkata, refused to take the Rs 2 lakh the state government offered as compensation on Thursday.

Anushka’s family told Dum Dum MP Saugata Roy, state education minister Bratya Basu and Pachu Ray, the chairperson of South Dum Dum Municipality’s board of administrators, to leave their house when they arrived with an entourage to express grief.

“We don’t need your money. If you really want to help, bring our daughter back to life. Else, please leave this house,” Anushka’s mother Priyanka told Roy.

She told this newspaper that they did not need any money from the government. What they want is action against Surajit Roy Chowdhury, the coordinator of Ward 9 of South Dum Dum Municipality, where the incident happened, for criminal negligence.

Anushka Nandi’s body being brought home in a hearse on Thursday Gautam Bose

“They cannot fix a price on our daughter’s head. All the lamp posts in our area have exposed wiring and the entire locality gets waterlogged whenever it rains. We had asked Roy Chowdhury to do something about it but he did not heed to any of our requests,” said Priyanka.

The 12-year-olds were returning home from tuition wading through water on Wednesday night when one of them accidentally touched a lamp post with exposed wires.

She got electrocuted. The other girl tried to help her and got electrocuted, too.

The taped-up maintenance hatch on a trident lamp, near the lamp post in Dum Dum that caused the death of the two girls Gautam Bose

The principal responsibility of maintaining lamp posts in all wards of South Dum Dum lies with South Dum Dum Municipality.

Roy Chowdhury, the coordinator of the ward, passed the blame to CESC.

“We can do little about waterlogging as the main drainage channel, Bagjola canal, is overflowing. The maintenance of electrical lines as well as posts rests with CESC and I cannot do anything about it,” said Roy Chowdhury.

Residents pay their respects after a hearse carrying Anushka Nandi’s body arrived at the Dum Dum neighbourhood on Thursday. Gautam Bose

Metro on Thursday found the entire neighbourhood flooded and almost all lamp posts had electrical wires jutting out.

The hatches on most of the posts — meant for carrying out maintenance and repairs — were open, increasing chances of someone coming in contact with a live wire again.

Residents said this was the way they had been over several years. After the deaths on Wednesday night, some of the hatches have been hurriedly taped.

Anuksha’s grandmother comes out to see her Gautam Bose

Family refuses amount

Koel Dey, a schoolteacher, who used to teach dance to Anushka and Sneha, said residents had visited the ward office and told the ward assistant about the state of affairs but nothing was done.

“It has taken the deaths of two young girls to finally nudge the authorities into some action. But even then they have done a shoddy job,” said Dey.

Mother (in yellow) comes out to see her Gautam Bose

Residents of the locality who had gathered to catch a last glimpse of the two children said they were living in fear.

Ray, the chairperson of South Dum Dum Municipality’s board of administrators, said they had formed a committee to probe the deaths. “We will have a report in three days and take action against anybody who has been negligent,” said Ray.