A day after a journalist in Kerala named his newborn baby as Asifa, a corporator in the neighbouring state of Karnataka on Monday chose to rechristen her eight-year-old daughter after the Kathua rape and murder victim.

Mangalore City Corporation corporator and State Congress Women’s Committee general secretary Prathibha Kulai said the Kathua incident “has made a lasting impression on Indians and the memory of the little girl who was subjected to intense pain cannot be forgotten,” reports said.

Prathibha said that her daughter Prithvi will have Kathua rape victim’s name prefixed to her name henceforth.

Earlier on Sunday, a journalist in Kerala, Rajith Ram, named his two-month-old daughter after the Kathua victim. Ram said he looked at his second daughter, a new-born, and called her ‘….., my dear daughter!’ It was a firm proclamation of an independent mind.

Soon he posted it on Facebook, and wrote below the photo of the two-month old smiling kid, “Given her the name; Yes, the same…  ‘….. S Raj’… She is my daughter.”

Responses started pouring in within minutes of the post. Ram, a Kannur-based journalist with Malayalam daily Mathrubhumi, was amazed to see the tremendous response.

“The response is amazing. It is getting bigger and bigger by minute,” he said. The post was shared over 15000 times on FB while the likes have crossed 26k, according to The New Indian Express.

“As the father of a seven-year-old daughter, I felt angry and got frustrated at the events that took place even after that hideous act. That such barbaric, cruel acts still happen in our country, is a disturbing thought for a father of two girls like me. When the thought occurred to me to name my second daughter who was born on February 4, after  ‘….’ I discussed it with my wife Sandhya. She readily agreed to the idea,” says Ram.

“It was just a casual post. I just wanted to let some of my friends know how I felt about this incident and wanted to express solidarity to the cause. But what followed was just unbelievable,” said the 39-year-old.