Overall, rape has been an enduring problem in India heightened by the system of social inequality and a dearth of effective governmental remedies. It is evident that rape is perpetuated through long-lasting stigmas surrounding the status of women and the dominant patriarchal system in society.
In 2012, 24,923 rape cases were registered across India and a total of 34,651 rape cases were reported in 2015. On the night of December 16,2012, a 23-year-old physiotherapist intern and Awindra Pratap Pandey (her friend), were attacked. Though later suffered broken limbs but survived. Waiting at the bus-stop in south Delhi looking for the means to reach their home in Dwarka, an off-duty charter bus, with six male occupants, including the driver, stopped by and offered them a ride. The bus moved in a direction which was off the route. The unsuspecting friends noticed something was wrong as the doors of the vehicle had been shut tightly and the windows were firmly covered with curtains, hence leaving it oblivious from the outside world.
Pandey, who spoke about the incident later, that when he resisted, a scuffle broke out between him and the men who were under the influence of alcohol began molesting Nirbhaya – the name given to the woman later by the media which means “fearless”. Nirbhaya’s friend was knocked down unconscious. As Pandey lay insensible, the men dragged Nirbhaya to the back of the moving bus and took turns to molest her. As she struggled and attacked back, one of perpetrator – a juvenile – inserted a rusted, rod (a part of the bus tool-kit) into her private parts. Thus, pulling and ripping her intestines apart. Done with the barbarism, the assailants then threw the two out of the bus and even tried to run the vehicle over them.
But her friend, though injured himself, pulled her aside on the roadside . A passerby found them laying half dead and informed Delhi Police which admitted the victims in the hospital. The male friend was given treatment and Nirbhaya underwent emergency surgeries. She was put on a ventilator and was labeled as being in critical condition.
However, her health drastically worsened; thus, prompting her transportation to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore on December 26th. Physicians confirmed further internal bleeding and multiple-organ failure. Finally, she lost the battle to death at the early hours on 29 December.
