Gang rape, killing of teen in India sparks outrage
January 4, 2014
KOLKATA, India (AP) — The father of a teenage girl who was allegedly gang raped and later died after being set on fire in eastern India is demanding a federal inquiry into the case, which has renewed public outrage over sexual violence in the country. Hundreds of people protested Friday in the West Bengal city of Kolkata, accusing state authorities of failing to protect the family after the 16-year-old girl went to police in October to report she had been raped twice by the same gang. The state's urban development minister defended the police response, noting that six suspects had been arrested in the rapes and another two for allegedly setting the girl on fire. "The state government has taken appropriate action in this case," said the minister, Firhad Hakim. The girl reported being gang raped and left in a field near her home in late October in the Madhyamgram suburb of Kolkata, formerly Calcutta. The next day she was allegedly abducted by the same gang and raped again before being left unconscious by railway tracks, police said. The girl's father, a taxi driver, said last week that his daughter was set on fire on Dec. 23 after being threatened with violence if she did not withdraw her police complaint. She died from her injuries on Wednesday.
January 4, 2014
KOLKATA, India (AP) — The father of a teenage girl who was allegedly gang raped and later died after being set on fire in eastern India is demanding a federal inquiry into the case, which has renewed public outrage over sexual violence in the country. Hundreds of people protested Friday in the West Bengal city of Kolkata, accusing state authorities of failing to protect the family after the 16-year-old girl went to police in October to report she had been raped twice by the same gang. The state's urban development minister defended the police response, noting that six suspects had been arrested in the rapes and another two for allegedly setting the girl on fire. "The state government has taken appropriate action in this case," said the minister, Firhad Hakim. The girl reported being gang raped and left in a field near her home in late October in the Madhyamgram suburb of Kolkata, formerly Calcutta. The next day she was allegedly abducted by the same gang and raped again before being left unconscious by railway tracks, police said. The girl's father, a taxi driver, said last week that his daughter was set on fire on Dec. 23 after being threatened with violence if she did not withdraw her police complaint. She died from her injuries on Wednesday.
Additional low-lights collocated from Indian and foreign media...
- Local police strenuously attempted to dissuade her from filing rape charges and employed delaying tactics
- Police stood by as the rapist-thugs threatened the family at home demanding they drop charges and leave the area
- Police also told the family to pack up and go back to Bihar
- The landlady (related to one of the thugs) heard her screams for help after being set on fire but did nothing
- The local hospital refused to transfer her to another hospital with a burn unit
- Police originally said her death was a suicide when they knew (for six days) that it was a murder
- The police squabbled with the family about cremation arrangements and tried to illegally seize the body
- The Calcutta government (Mamata Bannerjee) defends police actions and slams the negative coverage as a political conspiracy
Unfortunately, this is not fiction. It is reported across the globe in print and the internet.
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