A New Delhi gang-rape victim passed away Friday after suffering a brain injury and organ failure during the horrific attack, which has sparked protests throughout the country. The Indian medical student was brutally raped, beaten, and thrown from a moving bus on December 16. Her injuries were so severe that she spent several days in intensive care before being airlifted for treatment to Singapore.
Via:
The 23-year-old medical student, who was severely beaten, raped for almost an hour and thrown out of a moving bus in New Delhi on Dec 16, was airlifted to Singapore on December 26 for specialist treatment.
The attack had sparked demonstrations across India, culminating last weekend in pitched battles between police and protesters outraged over the lack of safety for women in the capital.
"Despite all efforts by a team of eight specialists in Mount Elizabeth Hospital to keep her stable, her condition continued to deteriorate over these two days. She had suffered from severe organ failure following serious injuries to her body and brain."
"She was courageous in fighting for her life for so long against the odds but the trauma to her body was too severe for her to overcome," he added.
Another gang-rape victim, a 17-year-old Indian girl, has committed suicide after police pressured her to drop the case and marry one of her attackers.
Via:
"The police started pressuring her to either reach a financial settlement with her attackers or marry one of them," her sister told the NDTV network.
Meanwhile, the Press Trust of India reported that a police officer has been suspended for allegedly refusing to register a rape complaint in the northern state of Chhattisgar.
The woman and her husband later brought the case to the attention of a more senior officer and a hunt has now been launched for her attacker, an auto rickshaw driver.
Official figures show that 228,650 of the total 256,329 violent crimes recorded last year in India were against women.
The real figure is thought to be much higher as so many women are reluctant to report attacks to the police.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has pledged to bring in new laws to cover attacks on women.
