Four men have been sentenced to death by a judge in Delhi for the 2012 gang rape of a 23-year-old physical therapist. The attack happened in December while the woman was travelling on a bus in the Indian capital. She was held hostage on the bus and gang raped while another accomplice drove the bus around. The woman later died from massive internal injuries she sustained when she was penetrated with an iron rod during the attack. The four men sentenced to death were convicted earlier in the week of "rape, unnatural sex, murder, conspiracy and destruction of evidence."
The death sentenced was passed by Judge Yogesh Khanna. When the judge read the sentence he addressed the four men saying their crime "shocked the collective conscience of Indians" and was one of the "rarest of rare category that deserved capital punishment. Prosecutors trying the case sought the death penalty early on, not only for the brutal nature of the crime but also to send a message to others thinking of attacking and raping an unsuspecting woman. CNN reports "Anger about the deadly assault has had a widespread impact in India. It set off demonstrations, started a debate about women's treatment in society."
There were a total of six men accused of attacking the female victim and her male friend while they were travelling home on December 16, 2012. The male friend was beaten and stripped while the woman was raped. Both people were left naked by the side of a road after the attackers were through. The man driving the bus during the attack committed suicide while in jail during the early part of the year. The sixth person tried in the case was tried as a juvenile and sentenced to three years in a "reform facility," the rapist was 16 at the time of the attack.
The father of the 23-year-old victim spoke anonymously with The BBC saying his family was pleased with the court's decision. "We are very happy. Justice has been delivered," he said. Protesters outside the courthouse were demanding the four men be hanged for their crime. Each one of the defendants deny the crimes for which they have been convicted. They are having their lawyers appeal the death sentence and even pleading to the president for Clemency. Each process could take years.
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