Many of us in the december 2012 will have heard about the gang rape against a physiotherapy intern (Not been named).
Using the Wikipedia page about this story, i'd like to go through and just point out something's that do not seem right to me....
Firstly, for those not knowing what happend, the Wikipedia page has the incident down as....
The victims, a 23-year-old female physiotherapy intern and her male friend, were on their way home after watching a film in Saket in South Delhi. They boarded a chartered bus at Munirka for Dwarka that was being driven by joyriders at about 9:30 pm. The minor among the accused had called for passengers telling them that it was going towards their destination. The woman's friend became suspicious when the bus deviated from its normal route and its doors were shut. When he objected, the group of six men already on board taunted the couple, asking what they were doing alone at such a late hour.
When the victim's friend tried to intervene, he was beaten, gagged and knocked unconscious with an iron rod. The men dragged the woman to the rear of the bus, beating her with the rod and raping her while the bus driver continued to drive. Medical reports later suggested that the woman suffered serious injuries to her abdomen, intestines and genitals due to the assault, and doctors say that the damage indicates that a blunt object (suspected to be the iron rod) may have been used for penetration. That rod was later described by police as being a rusted, L-shaped implement of the type used with a wheel jack. After the beatings and rape ended, the gang threw the two from the moving bus. Then the accused allegedly tried to drive the bus over the girl but she was pulled aside in the nick of time by her male friend. One of the perpetrators later cleaned the vehicle. Police impounded it the next day/ As she was pinned down and raped, the young woman put up a fight but was hopelessly outnumbered. She bit three of the men assaulting her. The bite marks on the three accused men are likely to be part of the Delhi Police's evidence in their chargesheet.
The woman and her companion were found by a passerby on the road, partially clothed and unconscious, around 11 pm. The passerby phoned the Delhi Police, who took the couple to a hospital, where the female victim was given emergency treatment and placed on mechanical ventilation. The victim was found with only 5% of her intestines left inside of her. A doctor at the hospital later said that the "rod was inserted into her and it was pulled out with so much force that the act brought out her intestines also. That is probably the only thing that explains such severe damage to her intestines.”
I feel lost for words when trying to tell people about what happend to the pair of them. This is some kind of stuff that you wouldn't even wish on your worst enemy and i can't begin to tell you how much i am behind the protest's which took place after this incident, calling for female equality and for all the details to be released over this topic.
Let's look at what happend afterwards, because this is what i have a slight issue with....
On 19 December 2012, the damaged intestines of the victim were resected due to risk of gangrene, and she received intravenous nutrition and medication. On 21 December 2012, the government appointed a committee of physicians to ensure she received the best medical care. By 25 December 2012, she remained intubated, on life support and in critical condition. Doctors stated that the internal bleeding had been controlled to an extent, but her increased bilirubin level (suggesting hepatic dysfunction or hemolysis) was a "serious cause of concern".
At a cabinet meeting chaired by Manmohan Singh on 26 December, the decision was made to fly her to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore for further care. Mount Elizabeth is a multi-organ transplant specialty hospital.
The decision to move the patient while she was still in critical condition has been criticised for being purely political. Doctors have questioned the need to transfer an ICU patient for organ transplants that were not scheduled for weeks or even months later.
Government sources indicate that the Chief Minister of Delhi, Sheila Dikshit, was personally behind the decision. Hours earlier, Union Minister P. Chidambaram had stated that the woman was not in a condition to move. Some reports suggest that the decision to shift was taken when it was already clear that she would not survive the next 48 hours
During the six-hour flight by air-ambulance to Singapore, at 30,000 feet, the victim suddenly went into a near collapse. Her blood pressure dipped alarmingly, and doctors on the flight had to create an arterial line to stabilize her. That the doctors were able to perform this procedure in-flight was considered a medical feat. However, the victim never regained consciousness in Singapore.
On 28 December 2012, at 11 am (IST), her condition was "extremely critical" and the Chief Executive Officer of the Mount Elizabeth Hospital said that the woman suffered brain damage, pneumonia, abdominal infection, and that she was "fighting for her life." Her condition continued to deteriorate, and she died at 4:45 am on 29 December, Singapore Standard Time (2:15 am, 29 December, IST; 8:45 pm, 28 December, UTC).
Her body was cremated on 30 December at Delhi under high police security. The government denied access to the media and the public. The "fortification" of Delhi was criticised by many, including the main opposition party of India.
Now of course, while in either hospital, it should be pointed out that i am sure, she was getting all the right help that she needed, or atleast i would like to think so. I've never visited these hospitals.... so i don't know.
However, WHY was she flown to another hospital? She was fighting for her life as it was at the time and yet still, the government moved her. Now granted, they moved her to a hospital which is a specialist for organ transplants, great! but these operations wouldn't have happend for a while, so why move her so soon?
Not only this, but as soon as she died and news spread of her passing, where was the government to say "we will now try these men for murder". It took them a while to say this, although latest news is, is that these men will be tried for murder, among other charges.
This incident should never have happend. At all. But, it's good to see that the incident is being used to give a voice to people who call for equality. Where men are no longer legally allowed to see women as a peice of property and as equal people. It is long overdue for alot of places in the east.
Moving on from this incident and of course we all have been seeing that major protests have been taking place, calling for justice to be served to these 6 men, whom it is believed, the police have at the moment.
Six men have been arrested in connection with the incident: Ram Singh, the bus driver, and his brother, Mukesh Singh, were both arrested in Rajasthan; Vinay Sharma, an assistant gym instructor, was arrested in Delhi, as was Pawan Gupta, a fruit seller; Raju, a minor, and native of Uttar Pradesh was arrested by the police at Anand Vihar terminal in Delhi; and Akshay Thakur, a man who had gone from Bihar to Delhi seeking work, was arrested in Aurangabad in Bihar.
The group had been drinking together and "having a party" before taking the bus out. Raju had only met the others that day.
Ram Singh was presented before the Metropolitan Magistrate on 18 December 2012. Mukesh Singh, who was placed in Tihar Jail after his arrest, was assaulted by other inmates and was kept in solitary confinement for his own protection. Ram and Mukesh Singh are from Ravi Dass Camp, a slum in South Delhi. Ram Singh suffers from a substantial disability in his right arm, sustained after a bus accident for which he had sought compensation. He refused to participate in an identification process.
Shortly after the attacks, Gupta said he accepted his guilt and should be hanged.
The male victim testified in court on 19 December. The female victim recorded her statement with a sub-divisional magistrate at the Safdarjung Hospital on 21 December 2012, in the presence of the Deputy Commissioner of police.
The five adults accused could face charges under the Indian Penal Code. The juvenile suspect, Raju, is subject to a separate legal process. The police promised to file the charge sheet within one week, following public outrage and demand for a speedy trial and prosecution.
At the suggestion of the Delhi Chief Minister, the Delhi High Court approved the creation of five fast-track courts to try rape and sexual assault cases. On 21 December 2012, the government promised to file the charge sheet "quickly" and seek the maximum penalty of life imprisonment for the perpetrators. The Union Parliament’s Standing Committee on Home Affairs met on 27 December 2012 to discuss the issue, and Union Home Secretary R. K. Singh and Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar were summoned to appear.
On 21 December 2012, the Delhi High Court reprimanded the Delhi police for being "evasive" in a probe status report providing details of officers on patrol duty in the area covered by the bus route. A further court hearing on the matter is scheduled for 9 January 2013. The following day, the Delhi Police initiated action against three Hauz Khas police station personnel for alleged inaction on an alleged robbery of the bus on which the gang rape and assault occurred. Just before the gang rape, the accused had robbed a carpenter, Ramadhar, after picking him up in their area. On 24 December 2012, two Assistant Commissioners of Police were suspended for failing to prevent the gang rape incident.
On 29 December 2012, following the death of the victim, the accused were charged with murder by the police. Senior lawyer Dayan Krishnan has been appointed as the special public prosecutor and Delhi police is hoping to file the charge sheet by January 3, 2013.
I can only hope that some sort of justice is given to these men and those who have been involved in the way of allowing this incident to take place.... ie, no provention from the police service.
I honestly have no idea as to what would be good justice. Sticking them in a prison, allowing them to live a life between 4 walls, while being kept at the expense of the public, 3 meals a day along with some luxury's. I don't feel that the death penalty would be a good option either, since the death's would be over quickly and in some cases, almost pain free.
Ideally, going back to my nana's way of thinking, i'd like to see done to them what they did to the girl and her male friend. Fighting fire, with fire.
Whatever the outcome of this incident is, i can only hope that serious lessons will be learned and that mind's world over will be changed about how we treat each other.
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