The father of a student gang-raped, beaten and murdered in India has called on his country to change and stop ignoring attacks on women.
Jyoti Singh Pandey, 23, was attacked on a bus in New Delhi last month. After an hour-long ordeal she was dumped on the side of a road and died in hospital in Singapore two weeks ago. The case has shocked the nation and triggered landmark protests.
Today her father Badri warned similar unspeakable attacks happen “every day” in India and told the nation to “wake up” to its mistreatment of women. Mr Pandey, 53, said of his daughter: “She has brought an awakening to society. Society cannot any longer turn a blind eye to these sorts of incidents which are happening every day.
“We have to change ourselves. If there are no changes then these horrible things won’t stop. The public have to wake up now.”
Five men have been charged with rape and murder and could face the death penalty if convicted. Yesterday three said they would plead not guilty, according to their lawyer. A sixth suspect, thought to be 17, will be tried in a youth court if it is confirmed he is a minor, and would face a maximum three years’ detention. Mr Pandey, who is from a rural district in Uttar Pradesh in northern India, called for a law in his daughter’s name to make underage offenders as liable as adults for rape, and subject to the death penalty.
He said: “If possible it would be nice to have some sort of law in her name. If a hospital or something nice can be named after her too, at least something good could have come out of all of this, or it’s just all pointless.”
Under Indian law rape victims remain anonymous. But campaigners had called for Ms Pandey to be identified so she could be honoured. She had been studying a medical degree — a first for their family. Her father, who earns £80 a month as an airport labourer, told ITV1 Daybreak: “Right from the start her ambition was to be a doctor. Her main aim was that our family wouldn’t have to suffer any more, she wanted to ... wipe out our poverty.”
