Rahul Gandhi ‘stunned’ by rape victim burnt alive in Jharkhand, says, ‘another girl we’ve failed’

Now, the recent brutal rape and murder of a teenager in Jharkhand where the victim was burnt alive by attackers had left us once again numbed.

New Delhi, May 8: First, the gory details of gang-rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua left the nation shocked a few weeks ago. Now, the recent brutal rape and murder of a teenager in Jharkhand where the victim was burnt alive by attackers had left us once again numbed.

The incident, which took place in Raja Kendua village in the eastern state, took a devilish turn because the parents of the victim approached the panchayat for justice after the 17-year-old school-going teenager was raped by two men. The panchayat asked the accused to pay a fine of Rs 50,000 to the victim's family, which angered them and a group of around two dozen men burnt the girl alive.

Reacting to the bone-chilling episode, Congress president Rahul Gandhi called the death a "tragedy" on Monday. He also blamed the police for not acting "quickly enough".

"In Jharkhand, the rape and brutal murder of a young girl who was set afire by her rapist, has left me stunned and angry. Her death is a tragedy. The police were informed of the rape but didn't act quickly enough. As a nation, this is yet another girl we have failed," Rahul tweeted along with a detailed news report by NDTV.

The barbaric Jharkhand incident is one among a series of rapes and murders of minors in the country in the last few weeks. While the nation took to the streets to protest against the Kathua and Uttar Pradesh's Unnao rape cases, parents and guardians across the country are worried that their wards seem to be unsafe in their own motherland.

According to reports, at least 40,000 rape cases were reported in India in 2016. Activists working for women rights say that most often cases of rape go unreported as the victims and their family members fear backlash from the accused.

After its "studied silence" over crimes against women, especially minor girls, the Narendra Modi government approved the ordinance to allow courts to award death penalty to those convicted of raping girls under 12 recently.

In spite of the protests and a new law, things remain the same as several cases of rapes and murders of minors have been reported from across the country.