National outcry as gang-raped mum has bullet casing drop from vagina days later

The brutal gang rape of a mother of four has provoked a national outcry as it’s compared to the devastating 2012 Delhi assault. The 28-year-old was savagely attacked by five men at her home in the northern state of Bihar, India on June 11.

Anti-rape campaigners warn that while the victim survived, her case received significant attention due to a bullet dropping from her vagina days later. But actually, “fear has not been installed in society,” campaigner Yogita Bhayana told the BBC. She added that too many people in India don’t realise that rape can receive capital punishment and society has become desensitised to such crimes.

This case echoes that of the Nirbhaya case, also known as the 2012 Delhi assault, which involved the gang rape and murder of a 22-year-old woman on a moving bus. In the wake of the tragedy, New Delhi was gripped by massive public demonstrations, as thousands of protesters clashed with security forces to condemn the Indian government’s failure to ensure the safety of women.

14 years later and an avoidable tragedy has struck again. On the night of the attack, the woman was in her outside toilet when the men forced themselves in. She told the BBC Hindi: “They stripped me, gagged me, and tied my hands. When I tried to fight back, they slashed my chest with a blade and raped me.”

Her husband allegedly confused her cries for a stray cat, but when he went to check, he realised he’d been locked inside their one-bed house. After a neighbour let him out, he found his wife in a shocking condition.

But when the victim needed help most, police and authorities weren’t there, she claims. Her husband, an e-rickshaw driver, reportedly carried her to a police station around 3km from their home, but he was swiftly turned away. He said the police refused to file a complaint and advised him to take her to a doctor.

However, the victim claims she was then turned away by a nearby clinic, which said it did not handle emergencies and had no doctor on duty. She was then taken to a government community health centre, where she received first aid before being referred to a district hospital. However, the care the victim received at a local clinic wasn’t much better. Despite telling the doctor about the gangrape, the Civil Surgeon of Begusarai claims they were not aware of this until after conducting her medical examination.

The victim was then discharged from the hospital, returned after losing consciousness, and was discharged again. A week after the attack, a bullet casing dropped from the victim’s vagina. Other objects, including a stone, were then removed from her. Similarly, the victim of the 2012 Delhi assault, Jyoti Singh, was abused with objects.

Following the recent attack, the police station head Rajiv Kumar has since been suspended for “negligence, apathy, and insensitivity”, Begusarai police said. They said an FIR (First Information Report) in the case was registered at the local police station on 13 June.

Begusarai superintendent of police Maneesh (who uses only one name) also told the BBC that: “There are three named and two unidentified accused in this case. We have arrested two of them.”