NEW DELHI, 2 Jan 2023:
A 20-year-old woman died after being dragged by a vehicle for several miles in New Delhi, sparking outrage across the country today.
“What happened in Kanjhawala (neighbourhood) is totally shameful. I hope those guilty are severely punished,” tweeted Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in Hindi.
The deceased young woman was travelling on a motorcycle last night when she was knocked down by a car in which five men were travelling – according to the police, who arrested the alleged culprits.
Local broadcaster NDTV aired CCTV footage showing a grey car dragging the victim under it in several parts of the city.
The perpetrators allegedly drove for several miles before they pulled out the girl from under the vehicle and fled the scene, police deputy commissioner Harendra Singh said.
The officers later found the naked body of the victim.
The lack of respect for traffic regulations, insufficient lighting and poor road conditions contribute to the high number of road accidents in India.
In 2020, 131,714 people died in traffic accidents in the south Asian country, according to official data.
However, this case assumed a different dimension – given that the victim was a woman, who was found without clothes, and the perpetrators fled the scene.
National Commission for Women (NCW) of the government today called for a fair and swift investigation into the incident and also ascertain if the victim was sexually assauted.
“NCW has also sought that the victim’s post mortem must be conducted to ascertain whether the victim was sexually assaulted or not and to invoke relevant provisions in the FIR (First Information Report) if allegations levelled by victim’s mother are found to be true,” the commission said in a statement.
In 2021, the National Crime Records Bureau of India registered more than 428,000 cases of violence against women, including 31,600 rapes.
India witnessed unprecedented mass protests against gender violence in late 2012, following the gang rape of a young university student on a bus in New Delhi and her subsequent death from serious injuries.
The country-wide uproar led to toughening of laws against sexual assault, including imposing the death penalty against several of those guilty in that case, although many criticise that the measures have not been enough.
– EFE