India remembers Delhi rape victim

Events held across India in memory of medical student who died after being brutally gang-raped last December.

The gang-rape triggered protests and forced the government to enact stricter laws [AP]

India marked the first anniversary of the gang-rape of a Delhi medical student which rocked the nation and brought about far-reaching legal reforms.

On December 16, 2012, a physiotherapy student in the capital New Delhi was gang-raped eventually leading to her death.

The gruesomeness of the rape shocked the nation’s conscience, leading to a mass reaction of a kind that has never been witnessed earlier.

A year into the rape and the aftermath, activists and students across the country have held events to mark the event, demanding better security for women.

The central government which in the throes of the gang-rape had announced the Nirbhaya (Fearless) fund worth Rs 1000 crore ($161 million) was forced on the defensive on Monday with activists reminding it that nothing had been done after the announcement.

In response, federal home minister Sushilkumar Shinde said the finance ministry had cleared the plans to use the fund.

Meanwhile, reports from around the country, doing a reality check on whether women felt more secure in the year since, pointed out there was not much of a difference on the ground. One report, quoting the situation in the commercial capital Mumbai said there were 338 cases of rape compared to 193 in 2012.

But what is clear is that since last December 16, cases of rape have been amplified by the media leading to action by the police.

Source: Al Jazeera