Four men have been accused of raping and murdering a 26-year-old woman in Hyderabad on Wednesday night, in a gruesome crime that has shocked the nation and sparked widespread protests
Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan led a chorus of angry and tearful voices as parliament debated the safety of women and children against the backdrop of the brutal rape and murder of a young woman in Telangana. “These types of people (the rape accused in the Telangana case) need to be brought out in public and lynched,” Jaya Bachchan said, adding, “I think it is time… the people want the government to give a proper and definite answer”.
Four men have been accused of raping and murdering a 26-year-old woman in Hyderabad on Wednesday night the accused planned the gruesome crime – which included her strangulation and the burning of her body to avoid identification – in detail when they her park her scooter near a toll booth.
The incident led to massive protests in Telangana and an outpouring of rage and grief across the country. The accused, aged between 20 and 26, have been arrested and three cops have been suspended for negligence.
“I don’t know how many times I’ve stood and spoken after this kind of crime. I think it is time… whether Nirbhaya or Kathua or what happened in Telangana… I think the people now want the government to give a proper and definite answer,” a calm but clearly furious Jaya Bachchan told the Rajya Sabha.
“What has the government done? How have they tackled it? How has justice been done for the victims? I am not taking names… but shouldn’t the security be held responsible? I feel only one day earlier something similar happened in that area in Telangana… why wasn’t this stopped?” she continued.
Mrs Bachchan also demanded that the people who fail to protect women and children from such horrific assaults should be “named and shamed”. She was not the only Rajya Sabha MP to express fury and concern at the law-and-order situation in the country today.
AIADMK MP Vijila Sathyanath broke down and cried during a speech in which she said her country was not safe for children and women. The Congress’ Amee Yajnik demanded central and state governments come together for a “social reformation on an emergency basis”.
News of the Telangana rape-murder have been followed by similarly shocking crimes in other parts of the country; in Rajasthan a six-year-old girl who went missing last week was found dead in her school uniform.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said he has given permission for discussion on the matter after Question Hour.
