On Saturday, relatives of a 23-year-old gang-raped woman who died late on Friday, demanded that her attackers meet the same fate as the accused in the Hyderabad gang rape case.
The demand for similar treatment of the accused came hours after the deceased, a resident of Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao District, succumbed to her injuries at a hospital in New Delhi after a 40-hour battle for her life late on Friday night.
“I have lost my daughter. The men behind her death must be shot down", said the victim’s father.
“I don’t want these five people to exist. I want their names erased. The accused should be sent to the place where she has gone. I request state chief Yogi Adityanath to ensure that this happens", the brother of the deceased said.
Deputy Chief of Uttar Pradesh Keshav Prasad Maurya described the passing of the Unnao rape victim as an extremely unfortunate incident. Indian news agency ANI quoted him as saying that all steps will be taken to bring her attackers to justice.
Keshav Prasad Maurya,UP Deputy Chief Minister on Unnao rape victim passes away:This is an extremely unfortunate incident, I can't even imagine what the family of the victim is going through. I assure them that we will not spare the culprits, will get them punished at the earliest pic.twitter.com/w5J9Ac1QMR
— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) December 7, 2019
In a tweet in India’s national language Hindi, Congress party politician Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said: I pray to God that Unnao gives courage to the victim's family in this hour of grief. It is a failure of all of us that we could not give her justice. Socially, we are all guilty, but it also shows the hollow law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh".
मैं ईश्वर से प्रार्थना करती हूं कि उन्नाव पीड़िता के परिवार को इस दुख की घड़ी में हिम्मत दे।
— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) December 7, 2019
यह हम सबकी नाकामयाबी है कि हम उसे न्याय नहीं दे पाए। सामाजिक तौर पर हम सब दोषी हैं लेकिन ये उत्तर प्रदेश में खोखली हो चुकी कानून व्यवस्था को भी दिखाता है। pic.twitter.com/0wgbXg5MLG
Ranjeet Ranjan, an opposition Congress party politician, called for all imprisoned rapists to be brought out of prison and hanged in public.
Ranjeet Ranjan, Congress: All the rapists who are lodged in jails should be brought out & hanged on the streets. It will send out a message to the people that if such thing is repeated, their fate will be same. pic.twitter.com/bz0HFgmZV5
— ANI (@ANI) December 7, 2019
“This is very sad news. We are determined and committed to bringing the perpetrators to justice", Brijesh Pathak, the state’s minister in charge of law and order, told Indian news agency ANI.
The Unnao rape victim was brought to India’s capital city Delhi in an air ambulance on Thursday evening after being raped and set ablaze while she was on her way to Rae Bareli to meet her lawyers in connection with the case.
On Friday, Telangana police killed four suspects after they attempted to escape a crime scene in Hyderabad, India, almost a fortnight after reportedly raping and burning a 26-year-old woman.
Although the move taken by the police on Friday was hailed by some people in society, others condemned their decision to eliminate the alleged rapists without trial as an "extrajudicial killing".
The veterinarian went missing on 27 November and her charred body was found on the outskirts of Hyderabad in southern Telangana a day later. Police arrested four men accused of the crime two days later.
Responding to the news of the death of the accused in a police encounter, the Hyderabad vet’s father said on Friday: "Justice was done to my daughter, at last. This will make her soul rest in peace".
The recent incidents of rape and murder have prompted a wave of public outrage across the country, with thousands taking to the streets in protest. The incidents have also been raised very strongly in India’s Parliament.
