India’s brave heart dies, grief unites Indians

December 29, 2012: The 23-year-old victim of the brutal gang rape and assault in Delhi that had triggered an outrage across India died early Saturday morning after putting up a brave battle for life for nearly a fortnight. The girl, who was admitted to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore on Thursday morning in an extremely critical condition, breathed her last at 2:15 AM India time.
Authorities have stepped up security in the Indian capital over fears that her death could spark a fresh round of violent protests. She was a medical student, and was brutally attacked by six men while riding in a minibus in New Delhi on December 16. Six suspects have been arrested and charged with the rape.

Indian President Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday called the woman brave and courageous in a message of condolence. “We will do everything possible to ensure that such an incident never happens again,” said the president.
In a interview with Vatican Radio on Saturday, Cardinal Oswald Garcias, President of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) said….. (audio)

According to data compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau, two women are raped every hour in India, where rapes have increased by 20 percent between 2007 and 2011.

It took nearly a week of protests for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to appear on TV pleading for calm and promising to make India safer for women. Many thought it was ironical that India's most powerful woman, Congress party chief Sonia Gandhi, met a group of outraged students only after massive public demonstrations had been widely televised.