Hundreds in India protest release of gang-rape convict
The youngest convict from the fatal 2012 gang rape in New Delhi, India has been released Sunday after fulfilling his three-year sentence in a reform home.聽
Twenty-three-year-old Nirbhaya, the victim鈥檚 name to the media, was traveling home from seeing a movie with a male friend on Dec. 16, 2012 when she was raped by six other men on the bus. She died in a hospital two weeks later from what doctors say were injuries sustained during the attack.聽
Four of the other attackers were convicted of rape and murder and are currently appealing their death sentences. The fifth attacker died in prison. The sixth attacker, who was聽17 at the time of the murder, was tried as a juvenile and received the maximum sentence allowed under law. State law also grants the youngest convict anonymity, which is why he is referred in the media only as聽鈥渢he juvenile.鈥� 聽聽
鈥淭he court is no doubt concerned by what has happened and the seriousness of the offense, but because they have to stay within the confines of the act and the rules and the law,鈥� Anil Soni, a government lawyer, told CNN.聽
Nirbhaya鈥檚 death has been a uniting force for protesters who see the country鈥檚 sentencing laws for rape and sexual assault as unacceptably lenient.
Immediately after Nirbhaya鈥檚 death, public protests pressured India鈥檚 government to double the prison sentences for rapists,聽, and officially criminalize stalking and trafficking of women. And while Nirbhaya鈥檚 attack has brought attention and some action to what critics see as聽India鈥檚 mild punishments for rape and sexual assault, protesters say the juvenile鈥檚 three-year stint in a juvenile home suggests India鈥檚 chaotic justice system stands to improve.聽
鈥淓ven after all our efforts, the juvenile convict will now be released,鈥� Nirbhaya鈥檚 mother said outside the courthouse. 鈥淲hat message is this sending out to the public of the country? All I wanted was justice . There is politics in the country and us innocent people are always sacrificed.鈥澛�
After the gang rape, a bill was introduced in parliament to extend the maximum three-year sentence for juveniles in especially heinous crimes. The bill failed.聽
鈥淥ur legal system should be strong enough to make us feel safe,鈥� Dolly Kaushik, a law student interning at India's high court in Delhi,聽told CNN. 鈥�.鈥�
Protesters and sympathetic lawmakers asked the court to issue a stay for continued custody of the juvenile, but the high court said no, finding no legal ground in Indian law.聽
The now-20-year-old rapist, who was suggested to be one of the most brutal of the attackers, has been moved outside of Dehli to an undisclosed location because of threats to his life. The government has said they will give the juvenile so he can begin a career as a tailor.聽
Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters, including Nirbhaya鈥檚 parents, at gathered at India Gate Sunday afternoon to oppose the release but they were detained by the police. 聽
