⁍ India’s federal police will investigate the alleged gang rape of a young woman in northern Uttar Pradesh state.
⁍ The 19-year-old Dalit woman died of her injuries earlier this week, triggering protests.
⁍ India is one of the world’s most dangerous places for women, with a rape occurring on average every 15 minutes.
– The chief minister of India’s Uttar Pradesh state has called in the country’s Central Bureau of Investigation to investigate the alleged gang rape of a young Dalit woman, whose death has sparked protests across the country. The 19-year-old woman died of her injuries earlier this week, triggering protests by both opposition political parties and the public in New Delhi and elsewhere against atrocities against a community often ostracized under India’s centuries-old caste system, Reuters reports. India is one of the world’s most dangerous places for women, with a rape occurring on average every 15 minutes based on federal data. In December 2012, the gang rape of a 23-year-old woman sparked nationwide outrage and led to a tough new anti-rape law. The chief minister of Uttar Pradesh state, which is ruled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party, has asked federal police, the Central Bureau of Investigation, to investigate the alleged rape, which occurred in its Hathras district. Uttar Pradesh’s Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has faced criticism in recent days for not allowing media and opposition parties to speak with the family of the dead woman. Public criticism grew after the family of the victim said her body had been cremated by police without their consent, an allegation officials deny. Hundreds of police officers barricaded a highway connecting the capital New Delhi to Hathras on Saturday. Several opposition leaders also drove out to meet the victim’s family.
Source: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-india-rape/indias-federal-police-to-probe-alleged-gang-rape-of-woman-who-died-of-injuries-statement-idUSKBN26O0V2