Protests were held at several places on Saturday against the rape and murder of a 25-year-old veterinarian in Hyderabad with an angry crowd hurling stones at the police personnel, who escorted the four accused to jail from a police station in the Telangana capital, and demanding that the culprits be handed over to them.
The accused were sent to judicial custody for 14 days by the executive magistrate who passed the order at the Shadnagar police station, where they were lodged, as they could not be produced in court due to the presence of the large number of protesters in front of the police station.
Stones were hurled at a police vehicle as the accused were being taken to the jail in Hyderabad, and police used mild force to control the crowd.
Some of the protesters demanded death penalty for the accused. “It is not enough if they are taken to court. They should be handed out the same treatment that they gave to the victim,” a protester said. “If you cannot do it, hand them over to us,” another said.
The protests came two days after veterinary doctor, who worked in a state-run hospital, was raped and killed by the four accused, all lorry workers, on the outskirts of Hyderabad. Her charred body was found on the outskirts of Hyderabad and the accused were arrested on Friday.
Many others lamented that the rape incidents were continuing despite changes in laws after the Nirbhaya incident in which a 23-year-old paramedic was gangraped on December 16, 2012.
National Commission for Women (NCW) member Shyamala Kundar, who was Hyderabad to enquire into the incident, said she has recommended action against policemen, after an enquiry, as they allegedly did not respond on time to a complaint from the victim’s family.
Protests were also held by different student groups and others at various places in Telangana demanding severe punishment to the accused. The local bar association has said it will not offer any legal assistance to the accused.
Amid widespread outrage over the incident, which brought back painful memories of the Nirbhaya case, a candlelight march was taken out at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.