Further cases of sexual violence against women have been reported around India since the incident, which took place on December 16. The shocking event has sparked long overdue debates about the social attitudes towards women in the region.
The woman attacked on the Dehli bus that night received such severe injuries during the attack that she died two weeks later.
The victim was attacked after going to the cinema and watching feature film Life of Pi with a male friend.
A charter bus illegally picked them up. Six men, including the bus driver proceeded to attack the woman for an hour, as the bus was moving through the city, and passing police checkpoints. She was attacked with an iron bar and received brutal internal injuries.
Both the man and woman were dumped naked on the side of the road.
Police are urging that this crime be severely punished. They are in favour of the death penalty. The victim’s Dad said: “The whole country is demanding that these monsters be hanged. I am with them,” reported the Guardian.
Executions are not commonplace in India; the legal system favours long prison sentences for severe crimes.
A sixth person is accused of sexual offences that night. Even more shockingly, he was a youth under 18-years of age. He will face trial separately from the other men in a juvenile court.
Other similar recent sexual offence cases involve a politician attacking a woman in the north east of the country. Another saw a teenage schoolgirl attacked by two men in Puducherry. Meanwhile, a 17-year-old in Delhi has accused two of her family members of repeated rape.
Members of the public have spoken out in light of these horrifying recent events and urged the Indian police force to take these cases more seriously. Allegedly, when women in India report having been raped to the police the authorities often refuse to acknowledge these crimes seriously and often don’t even press charges.
In an investigation, news magazine Tehelka recently exposed Indian police officers as misogynistic.
However, perceptions may eventually be changing with regards to sexual violence towards women in the region. On Wednesday police officers in Delhi began a training course.
Meanwhile, two police officers in Punjab were dismissed and another was suspended under allegations that they delayed an investigation about a reported gang rape, resulting in the victim eventually killing herself.
Images: Getty
