2012 Delhi gang rape and murder

"Nirbhaya" redirects here. For the 2021 film, see Nirbhaya (film).

2012 Delhi gang rape and murder
Protesters at India Gate in Delhi
LocationDelhi, India
Date16 December 2012 (2012-12-16)
Attack type
Femicide, torture murder, gang rape, kidnapping, robbery, assault
Deaths1
Injured1
VictimsJyoti Singh, Awindra Pratap Pandey
Perpetrators
  • Akshay Thakur
  • Mukesh Singh
  • Juvenile (17 years at that time)
  • Pawan Gupta
  • Ram Singh (died before trial)
  • Vinay Sharma
VerdictGuilty on all counts
ConvictionsRape, murder, unnatural offences, destruction of evidence[1]
OutcomePassage of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Bill 2015
Sentence

The 2012 Delhi gang rape and murder, commonly known as the Nirbhaya case, involved a rape and fatal assault that occurred on 16 December 2012 in Munirka, a neighbourhood in South Delhi. The incident took place when Jyoti Singh, a 22-year-old physiotherapy intern, was beaten, gang-raped, and tortured in a private bus in which she was travelling with her male friend, Avnindra Pratap Pandey. There were six others in the bus, including the driver, all of whom raped the woman and beat her friend. She was rushed to Safdarjung Hospital in Delhi for treatment and, as the public outrage mounted, the government had her transferred to Mount Elizabeth Hospital, Singapore eleven days after the assault, where she succumbed to her injuries two days later.[3][4][5] The incident generated widespread national and international coverage and was widely condemned, both in India and abroad. Subsequently, public protests against the state and central governments for failing to provide adequate security for women took place in New Delhi, where thousands of protesters clashed with security forces. Similar protests took place in major cities throughout the country. Since Indian law does not allow the press to publish a rape victim's name, the victim was widely known as Nirbhaya, meaning "fearless", and her struggle and death became a symbol of women's resistance to rape around the world.[6][7]

All the accused were arrested and charged with sexual assault and murder. One of the accused, Ram Singh, died in police custody from possible suicide on 11 March 2013.[8] According to some published reports and the police, Ram Singh hanged himself, but the defence lawyers and his family allege he was murdered.[9] The rest of the accused went on trial in a fast-track court; the prosecution finished presenting its evidence on 8 July 2013.[10] On 10 September 2013, the four adult defendants – Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur and Mukesh Singh (Ram Singh's brother) – were found guilty of rape and murder and three days later were sentenced to death.[11][12][13] In the death reference case and hearing appeals on 13 March 2014, Delhi High Court upheld the guilty verdict and the death sentences.[14] On 18 December 2019, the Supreme Court of India rejected the final appeals of the condemned perpetrators of the attack.[15] The four adult convicts were executed by hanging on 20 March 2020.[16][7] The juvenile was convicted of rape and murder and given the maximum sentence of three years' imprisonment in a reform facility, as per the Juvenile Justice Act.[17]

As a result of the protests, in December 2012, a judicial committee was set up to study and take public suggestions for the best ways to amend laws to provide quicker investigation and prosecution of sex offenders. After considering about 80,000 suggestions, the committee submitted a report which indicated that failures on the part of the government and police were the root cause behind crimes against women. In 2013, the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 was promulgated by President Pranab Mukherjee, several new laws were passed, and six new fast-track courts were created to hear rape cases. Critics argue that the legal system remains slow to hear and prosecute rape cases, but most agree that the case has resulted in a tremendous increase in the public discussion of crimes against women and statistics show that there has been an increase in the number of women willing to file a crime report. However, in December 2014, two years after the attack, the victim's father called the promises of reform unmet and said that he felt regret in that he had not been able to bring justice for his daughter and other women like her.[18]

  1. ^ Harris, Gardiner (3 January 2013). "Murder Charges Are Filed Against 5 Men in New Delhi Gang Rape". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 6 January 2013. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
  2. ^ "Nirbhaya gangrape case: Juvenile convict now working as cook with different identity". india.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2017.
  3. ^ "Safdarjung doctors remember Nirbhaya as 'brave woman', say law has taken its course". Times of India. 20 March 2020. Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT18Dec was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "Delhi gangrape: Chronology of events". The Hindu. New Delhi. 31 August 2013. Archived from the original on 2 September 2013. Retrieved 2 September 2013.
  6. ^ Nunglekpam Premi Devi (25 May 2018). Short Essays on Women and Society: Manipuri Women through the Century. FSP Media Publications. pp. 16–. GGKEY:K6X6DZDQYTH. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Nirbhaya case: Four Indian men executed for 2012 Delhi bus rape and murder". BBC News. 20 March 2020. Archived from the original on 31 March 2020. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  8. ^ Pandey, Devesh K.; Sikdar, Shubhomoy (11 March 2013). "Delhi gang-rape case accused commits 'suicide'". The Hindu. Chennai, India. Archived from the original on 13 March 2013. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
  9. ^ "Delhi rape accused found dead in prison". BBC. 11 March 2013. Archived from the original on 11 March 2013. Retrieved 11 March 2013.
  10. ^ "16 December gang rape: Prosecution finishes evidence". The Times of India. Indo-Asian News Service. 8 July 2013. Archived from the original on 10 July 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2014.
  11. ^ "Delhi gang rape: Four sentenced to death". BBC News. 13 September 2013. Archived from the original on 13 September 2013. Retrieved 13 September 2013.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference NYT Sep 13 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Sharma, Betwa (13 September 2013). "Photos: Indian court echoes populist outcry, gives 4 rapists death sentence". Sneak Peek. Vocativ.com. Archived from the original on 14 September 2013. Retrieved 14 September 2013.
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference NDTV was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ "India court paves the way for 4 men to be hanged for fatal gang rape on bus". CBS News. Associated Press. Archived from the original on 12 January 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  16. ^ Goswami, Dev (20 March 2020). "Justice for Nirbhaya: 4 men convicted for gang-rape hanged 7 years after brutal crime". India Today. Archived from the original on 20 March 2020. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
  17. ^ (in English) " Fast Track court awards death sentences to convicts of Delhi Rape case " Archived 21 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Ramalingam.Va, Le Journal International, 14 septembre 2013
  18. ^ "Nothing in India has changed since 16 December 2012: Nirbhaya's father". The Indian Express. New Delhi. 15 December 2014. Archived from the original on 23 December 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2014.