Five years since Nirbhaya gang-rape, her family still awaits justice
Today marks five years of the gruesome gang-rape of Nirbhaya, an incident that triggered country-wide protests forcing the government to formulate new laws on crimes against women. As the convicts await their review petition hearing by Supreme Court in January, Nirbhaya's mother Asha Devi feels that people cease to fear the law if justice is not served on time.
The brutal gang-rape that shook the nation
On the night of 16 Dec 2012, a 23-year-old paramedical student, Jyoti, who later came to be known as Nirbhaya, was gang-raped by six men in a moving bus in Delhi. She along with her male friend was thrown off the bus after the assault. The victim died during treatment at a Singapore hospital 13 days later on 29 Dec.
Initial arrests and trial
The perpetrators identified as bus driver Ram Singh, his brother Mukesh, Vinay Sharma, Pawan Gupta, Akshay Singh, and a sixth convict who is a juvenile, were arrested in Dec 2012. While the juvenile was tried separately, fast track court proceedings began against the five adult accused. In March 2013, main accused Ram Singh was found hanging in his cell in Tihar jail.
Death sentence
In Aug 2013, the juvenile was convicted for murder, gang-rape, and was given a 3-year sentence in probation home. In Sep 2013, the trial court sentenced the remaining four adults to death, which was later upheld by the Delhi High Court in March 2014.
Supreme court proceedings
In March 2014, Supreme Court stayed the death sentence. The juvenile, on the other hand, walked free after three years in probation home, in Dec 2015. In May 2017, SC upheld the death sentence stating that the case falls under 'rarest of rare'. The court allowed the accused to file review petition on 12 Dec 2017 and listed it for hearing in Jan 2018.
Nirbhaya's parents on delayed justice
Years after their daughter's death Nirbhaya's mother questions why the culprits have not yet been hanged. She said, "Everyday a Nirbhaya is gang-raped and killed..Whenever I hear such incident, I feel it is happening with my daughter."
