2012 Delhi gang rape case

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The 2012 Delhi gang rape case involves a rape and murder that occurred on 16 December 2012, in Munirka, a neighbourhood located in thesouthern part of New Delhi, when a 23-year-old female physiotherapy intern[2] was beaten and gang raped in a bus in which she was travelling with her male companion. The only other passengers on the bus were five men and the bus driver, all of whom raped the woman. The woman died from her injuries thirteen days later while undergoing emergency treatment in Singapore for brain and gastrointestinal damage.[3] All the accused, including the driver, were charged in connection with sexual assault and were arrested. They are currently on trial. The incident generated widespread national and international coverage and was condemned by various women groups, both in India and abroad. Subsequently, public protests against the Government of India and the Government of Delhi for not providing adequate security for women took place in New Delhi, where thousands of protesters clashed with security forces. Similar protests took place in major cities throughout the country.

[edit]Incident The victims, a 23-year old woman and a male friend, were on their way home on the night of 16 December 2012 after watching the film Life of Pi in Saket in South Delhi.[4] [5] They boarded a chartered bus at Munirka for Dwarka that was being driven by joyriders at about 9:30 pm (IST). There were only five others in the bus, including the driver. One of the men, a minor, had called for passengers telling them that it was going towards their destination.[3][6] The woman's friend became suspicious when the bus deviated from its normal route and its doors were shut. When he objected, the group of six men already on board, including the driver, taunted the couple, asking what they were doing alone at such a late hour. [7] When the woman's friend tried to intervene, he was beaten, gagged and knocked unconscious with an iron rod. The men then dragged the woman to the rear of the bus, beating her with the rod and raping her while the bus driver continued to drive. Medical reports later suggested that the woman suffered serious injuries to her

abdomen, intestines and genitals due to the assault, and doctors say that the damage indicates that a blunt object (suspected to be the iron rod) may have been used for penetration.[5] That rod was later described by police as being a rusted, Lshaped implement of the type used as a wheel jack handle.[8] According to the International Business Times, a police spokesman said that the minor was the most bruatal attacker and had "sexually abused his victim twice and ripped out her intestines with his bare hands."[9] According to police reports the woman attempted to fight off her assailants, biting three of the attackers and leaving bite marks on the accused men.[10] After the beatings and rape ended, the attackers threw both the victims from the moving bus. Then the bus driver allegedly tried to drive the bus over the woman but she was pulled aside by her male friend. One of the perpetrators later cleaned the vehicle to remove evidence. Police impounded it the next day. [10][11] The victims, partially clothed and unconscious, were found by a passerby on the road, at around 11 pm (IST). The passerby phoned the Delhi Police, who took the couple to Safdarjung Hospital, where the female victim was given emergency treatment and placed on mechanical ventilation. [12] She was found with only 5% of her intestines left inside of her abdomen. A doctor at the hospital later said that the "rod was inserted into her and it was pulled out with so much force that the act brought out her intestines also. That is probably the only thing that explains such severe damage to her intestines.[13] [edit]Victims The female victim was born and raised in Delhi while her parents were from a small village in the Ballia district of Uttar Pradesh. Her father, who sold his agricultural land to educate her, works for a private company as a loader in Delhi. [14] Complying with Indian law, the real name of the victim was initially not released to the media, so pseudonyms were used for her by various media houses instead, including Jagruti ("awareness"),Amanat ("treasure"), Nirbhaya ("fearless one"), and Damini ("lightning", after the 1993 Hindi film Damini),.[15][16][17] The male victim is 28 years old, from Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh, and lives in Ber Sarai, New Delhi.[18] Delhi police registered a criminal case against the editor of a Delhi based tabloid, Mail Today, for disclosing the female victim's identity, as such disclosure is an offence under section 228(A) of Indian Penal Code. [19] Shashi Tharoor, union minister, suggested that if the parents had no objection, her identity could be made public, with a view to showing respect for her courageous response by naming future laws after her, but Tharoor's remark created controversy. [20] Later, her father and

brother said that "if her name is made public for this purpose, they have no objection to it" as well as "if the government names the revised anti-rape law after her, they have no objection and it would be an honor to her". [21][22] [edit]Treatment

and death

On 19 December 2012, the woman's damaged intestines were resected due to risk of gangrene.[23] On 21 December, the government appointed a committee of physicians to ensure she received the best medical care. [24] By 25 December, she remained intubated, on life support and in critical condition. Doctors stated that the internal bleeding had been controlled to an extent, but her increased bilirubin level (suggesting hepatic dysfunction or hemolysis) was a "serious cause of concern".[25] At a cabinet meeting chaired by Manmohan Singh on 26 December, the decision was made to fly her to Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore for further care. Mount Elizabeth is a multi-organ transplant speciality hospital. [26][27] The decision to move the patient while she was still in critical condition has been criticised for being purely political. Doctors have questioned the need to transfer an ICU patient for organ transplants that were not scheduled for weeks or even months later. [28] [29] Government sources indicate that the Chief Minister of Delhi, Sheila Dikshit, was personally behind the decision.[30] Hours earlier, Union Minister P. Chidambaram had stated that the woman was not in a condition to move. [31] Some reports suggest that the decision to shift was taken when it was already clear that she would not survive the next 48 hours.[32] During the six-hour flight by air-ambulance to Singapore on 27 December, the woman suddenly went into a "near collapse". Her blood pressure dipped alarmingly, and doctors on the flight had to create an arterial line to stabilize her. That the doctors were able to perform this procedure in-flight was considered a medical feat. [33] However, the victim never regained consciousness in Singapore. [34] On 28 December 2012, at 11 am (IST), her condition was "extremely critical" and the Chief Executive Officer of the Mount Elizabeth Hospital said that the woman suffered brain damage, pneumonia, abdominal infection, and that she was "fighting for her life."[35] Her condition continued to deteriorate, and she died at 4:45 am on 29 December, Singapore Standard Time (2:15 am, 29 December, IST; 8:45 pm, 28 December, UTC).[36] Her body was cremated on 30 December 2012 in Delhi under high police security. The government denied access to the media and the public. The "fortification" of Delhi was criticised by many, including the main opposition party of India.[37] [edit]Alleged

perpetrators

Police found and arrested some suspects within 24 hours. [38] From highway CCTV recordings, a description of the bus, a white privately operated charter bus with a name written on it, and details of the windows, blinds, and seats could be seen. Going to the bus stand where the victims boarded it, other operators identified it as being contracted by a south Delhi private school. They then traced it and found its driver, Ram Singh. Police obtained sketches of the assailants with the help of the male victim, and used a cell phone stolen from the pair to find one of them.[38] Six men were arrested in connection with the incident. They include Ram Singh, the bus driver, and his brother, Mukesh Singh, who were both arrested in Rajasthan. Vinay Sharma, an assistant gym instructor, and Pawan Gupta, a fruit seller, were both arrested in Delhi.[39] A seventeen year old juvenile from Uttar Pradesh, referred to as Raju,[40][41][42] was arrested at the Anand Vihar terminal in Delhi while Akshay Thakur, a man who had come to Delhi seeking employment, was arrested in Aurangabad.[39][43] According to various reports, the group had been eating and drinking together and "having a party" earlier that day.[3] The juvenile had only met the others that day. [42] Although the charter bus which Ram Singh drove on weekdays was not permitted to pick up public passengers[11] or even to operate in Delhi because of its tinted windows,[44] they decided to take it out "to have some fun". [3] With Mukesh Singh driving, they first picked up a carpenter who was charged Rs. 10 for a ticket and then robbed of Rs. 8,000 and ejected in South Delhi. [44] They then turned back and a half hour later, picked up the couple who were charged Rs. 10 each. Ram Singh was presented before the Metropolitan Magistrate on 18 December 2012.[45] Mukesh Singh, who was placed in Tihar Jail after his arrest, was assaulted by other inmates and was kept in solitary confinement for his own protection.[46] Ram and Mukesh Singh are from Ravidas camp, a slum in South Delhi.[47] Ram Singh suffers from a substantial disability in his right arm, sustained after a bus accident for which he had sought compensation.[48] He refused to participate in an identification process.[44] Shortly after the attacks, Gupta said he accepted his guilt and should be hanged. [49]
[50]

The juvenile's real name has not been officially confirmed. [edit]Prosecution

The male victim testified in court on 19 December. [51] The female victim recorded her statement with a sub-divisional magistrate at the Safdarjung Hospital on 21 December 2012, in the presence of the Deputy Commissioner of police. [52] The five adults accused will face murder charges and other charges under the Indian Penal Code. The police promised to file the charge sheet within one week, following public outrage and demand for a speedy trial and prosecution. [53] At the suggestion of the Delhi Chief Minister, the Delhi High Court approved the creation of five fast-track courts to try rape and sexual assault cases. [54] On 21 December 2012, the government promised to file the charge sheet "quickly" and seek the maximum penalty of life imprisonment for the perpetrators. [55] The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs met on 27 December 2012 to discuss the issue, and Union Home Secretary R. K. Singh and Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar were summoned to appear.[56] The first of the five approved fast track courts was inaugurated on 2 January 2013 by Altamas Kabir, Chief Justice of India, in Saket court complex of South Delhi. The fast track court will conduct the trial of the accused in gang rape. [57] On 21 December 2012, the Delhi High Court reprimanded the Delhi police for being "evasive" in a probe status report providing details of officers on patrol duty in the area covered by the bus route. A further court hearing on the matter was scheduled for 9 January 2013.[58] The following day, the Delhi Police initiated action against three Hauz Khas police station personnel for alleged inaction on an alleged robbery of the bus on which the gang rape and assault occurred. Just before the gang rape, the accused had robbed a carpenter, Ramadhar, after picking him up in their area. [7] On 24 December 2012, two Assistant Commissioners of Police were suspended for failing to prevent the gang rape incident. [59] On 3 January 2013, five days after the woman's death, the police filed charges against the five men for rape, murder, and kidnapping, [60][61] as well as destruction of evidence, and the attempted murder of the woman's male companion. [1] If convicted, they will be eligible for the death penalty. Senior lawyer Dayan Krishnan has been appointed as the special public prosecutor.[62] On 9 January, a day before the case was expected to be handed over to the fasttrack court for trial, Ram Singh, Mukesh Kumar and Akshay Thakur were planning to plead 'Not Guilty', according to their legal defence team. [63] On 10 January, one suspect's lawyer, Manohar Lal Sharma, announced that his client would plead not guilty to all charges. Sharma states that the victims are responsible for the assault because they should not have been using public transportation and, as an unmarried couple, they should not have been on the streets at night. In an interview he said,

"Until today I have not seen a single incident or example of rape with a respected lady. Even an underworld don would not like to touch a girl with respect." [64] He further finds the male victim "wholly responsible" for the incident because he "failed in his duty to protect the woman".[64] It has emerged that the minor, Raju, was "the most brutal" of the attackers raping her twice and ripping her intestines out with his bare hands. [65][66][67] The role of the juvenile offender is elaborated in the 33-page charge sheet. [68] On 28 January, he was declared as a "minor" by the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB), which would enable him to walk free by 4 June 2013, less than six months after the gruesome incident, when he attains the age of 18 years according to section 16 of The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000, which provides that a juvenile can only be kept at the special home till he attains 18 years of age and he cannot be sent to jail thereafter, which in effect will result in his release. The accused, who was described as the most brutal of the six accused by the Delhi Police in its charge sheet, was declared as 17 years and six months old on the day of the crime by the JJB, which relied on his birth certificate and school documents produced before it. The JJB also rejected the police's plea for bone ossification test of the sixth accused for determining his "actual" age.[69][70] [71] The juvenile will now be tried separately in a Juvenile court. A petition moved by Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy seeking the prosecution of the sole juvenile along with the five adult accused in a fast track court because of the ghastly nature of his crime, was rejected by the Juvenile Justice Board presided over by Principal Magistrate Geetanjali Goel in New Delhi. [72][73][74] [edit]Public [edit]After

protests

the rape

Protests at Raisina Hill, Rajpath, New Delhi.

Police used water cannons and teargas to try and break up the protestors.

Public protests took place in New Delhi on 21 December 2012 at India Gate and Raisina Hill, the latter being the location of both the Parliament of Indiaand Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India. Thousands of protesters clashed with police, overturned cars, and battled Rapid Action Force units.[75] Demonstrators were lathi charged,[76] shot with water cannons and tear gas shells, and arrested.[77] Yoga guru Baba Ramdev and former Army chief General Vijay Kumar Singh were among demonstrators who clashed with Delhi Police at Jantar Mantar.[78] Police claimed that peaceful protests had been "hijacked" by hooligans and political activists.[79] Similar protests have occurred throughout the country. More than 600 women belonging to various organisations demonstrated in Bangalore.[80][81]Thousands of people silently marched in Kolkata.[82] Protests have occurred online as well on the social networking sites Facebook and WhatsApp, with users replacing their profile images with a black dot symbol.[83] Tens of thousands have signed an online petition protesting the incident.[84] The protests have also been explained as expressions of middle-class angst arising out of a collapse of a social contract between them and the liberal state. [85] Protestors also specifically cited the sex crime rate statistics in Delhi, the highest among Indian cities, and more than the next five cities combined. [86] Police figures show a rape reported on average every 18 hours; reported rape cases rose by nearly 17 percent between 2007 and 2011.[87]Between 16 December and 4 January 501 calls for harassment and 64 calls for rape were recorded by the Delhi Police, but only 4 were followed up by inquiries.[88] Calling the case a "Wake up call", the regional program director for U.N. Women South Asia said, There are rape cases in almost all cities and rural areas, where the victim dies immediately because of the brutality of the crime."[89]

The Delhi Police has been accused of using excessive force against the protestors, causing more outrage. The Hindustan Times reported that 375 tear gas canisters were used at India Gate and elsewhere in Delhi to disperse the crowds. [90] During a public protest, a policeman named Subhash Tomar collapsed and later died in hospital.[91] Two witnesses claimed that Tomar collapsed without being hit by any protesters, while a third disputed this. [92] Hospital doctors and the post-mortem gave contradictory reports: he died due to cardiac arrest, but it is not known if the heart attack was caused by blunt-force injuries that he suffered to his chest and neck. [93] Some experts state that his chest injuries may have been a side effect of the administration of CPR.[94][95] [edit]After

the death

People silently marching to protest with candlelight at Kolkata after the female victims death on 29 December 2012.

People in Bangalore protesting outsideBangalore Town Hall on 30 December 2012 demanding justice for the 23-year-old student following her death on 29 December 2012.

After the woman's death on 29 December, protests were staged all over India, including Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram,Mumbai and Visakha patnam. Many of the mourners carried candles, wore black dress and some pasted black cloth across their mouths.[96] The following day a large number of people staged protests near Jantar Mantar, New Delhi.[97] There were minor clashes between some groups of protesters and the

police; the police then shifted some protesters from the spot. [97] One group of protesters also observed a one-day hunger strike at Jantar Mantar. [97] All roads leading to India Gate were closed by police and areas where protesters had gathered during the previous week were out of bounds to the public. [97] Some of the protesters drew graffiti and slogans on papers spread on the road, condemning the incident, demanding stricter laws and speedy judgement. [98] The main opposition party of India, the BJP, renewed its demand for a special parliament session to discuss the case and to adopt stricter laws on crime against women. [37] New Years celebrations were scaled down to a large extent, with the Indian armed forces and some clubs and hotels in Delhi cancelling their new year parties. [99] Since her death, the unprecedented protests against rape have continued across India and have motivated the media and police to focus on the rising incidents of rape and sexual harassment in the country. Sexual assaults have made headline news almost daily, a big change from the time when such cases were mentioned only briefly and were rarely reported by television news channels. After a woman from the Indian state of Punjab was raped under similar circumstances, a senior police spokesman said, The increased media reporting and the protests have created an awakening among women, and they are now coming forward like never before to report rape and want to fight for justice. This has also made our police force more sensitive to these cases. Now they file the complaint immediately and believe the victims statement without questioning." [100] [edit]Reactions [edit]Management

of protests

Google India's home page on 31 December with a virtual candle in memory of the woman. [101]

Protesters believed the Indian government failed to act positively or give credible assurances to the protesters, and instead used police force to stop the protests, resorting to lathi-charging, pushing the media out of the scene and shutting down metro rail stations.[102] Seven metro rail stations in New Delhi were closed on 22 December 2012 to discourage protesters from gathering at Raisina Hill. [103] On 24 December 2012, police blocked roads leading to India Gate and Raisina Hill to prevent possible mass protests, and closed nine metro stations, affecting thousands of transit patrons. News reporters were not allowed to reach India Gate and Raisina Hill. In addition to CrPC section 144, which disallows assembly of groups larger than five, curfew was imposed near the presidential residence. [104]

[edit]Financial

assistance

The Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Akhilesh Yadav, announced a package of financial assistance 20 lakh (US$36,400) to the family of the woman and offered a government job to a family member.[105] A cabinet meeting presided by Chief Minister of Delhi, Sheila Dixit, decided to provide financial aid of 15 lakh (US$27,300) and a government job to one member of family. [106] [edit]Political

parties

The following day, in the Indian parliament, severe punishment was demanded for the perpetrators. The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha,Sushma Swaraj, stated: "The rapists should be hanged". [107] Sonia Gandhi visited the Safdarjang Hospital and met doctors on duty in the anaesthesia and surgery departments for an update on the woman's health.[108] Bahujan Samaj Party chief, Mayawati, said that proper investigation was required, and that "action should be so strict that no one should dare to act in such a manner again".[107] Jaya Bachchan said that she was "terribly disturbed" over the incident, and felt "ashamed" sitting in the House, feeling "helpless" for "not being able to do anything". [108] Meira Kumar, speaker of Lok Sabha, told reporters a "new law should be brought in and must get passed to ensure the safety of women." She went on to say: "The laws at present are not enough, we need stricter laws."[109][110] Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister of Delhi, said that she did not have the courage to meet the victim and described Delhi as a "rape capital" in interviews. [111] She said that senior police officials should be held accountable for the failure to take adequate measures to stop such incidents. Five fast-track courts have been established to process the current cases.[112] [edit]Indian

government

On 24 December 2012, in his first official reaction after the incident, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh appealed for calm, stressing that "violence will serve no purpose". In a televised address, he assured that all possible efforts would be made to ensure the safety of women in India. Singh expressed empathy, saying: "As a father of three daughters I feel as strongly about the incident as each one of you". [113] As a tribute to the female victim, the Prime Minister cancelled all his official events to celebrate the new year.[114] [edit]Other Speaking out against the protesters, President Pranab Mukherjee's son Abhijit Mukherjee argued that the women protesters did not appear to him to be students saying,"What's basically happening in Delhi is a lot like Egypt or elsewhere, where

there's something called the Pink Revolution, which has very little connection with ground realities. In India, staging candle-lit marches, going to discotheques...I can see many beautiful women among them highly dented-painted...[but] I have grave doubts whether they're students..." [115] Spiritual guru Asaram Bapu provoked criticism from the public [116] by saying that the victim was to blame for her own assault because she could have stopped the attack if she had "chanted God's name and fallen at the feet of the attackers". [117] Speaking to CNN, Leeza Mangaldas, actress and founder of Evoke India, a forum devoted to open dialogue in India said, "Unfortunately, in India rape is inextricably linked by men, and women to shame the ultimate desecration. Many victims are murdered by their rapists or choose to commit suicide. It is also not uncommon for the parents of rape victims to kill themselves. Thus, most victims don't speak up about what happened to them, lest their families be ostracized, lest they never find a husband or be shunned by their friends." [118] However, the editorial by Mangaldas, together with other western media reports on the rape case, was criticized on Jadaliyya, an academic initiative by the Arab Studies Institute. Here, such assertions were seen as an exploitation of the rape by orientalists to promote racist stereotypes of South Asians in western media and academia. The critique draws connections between media reports demonizing Middle Eastern and South Asian men as "racially prone to rape" and similar tactics employed by the British as part of a racist Indophobic propaganda campaign during the1857 rebellion casting resistance fighters as rapists.[119] In the wake of such remarks against India in western media, Jessica Valenti, writing in The Nation, also pointed out that such rapes are common in the United States as well, but US commentators exhibit a double standard in denying or minimizing their systemic nature while simultaneously attacking India for an alleged rape culture. [120] Similar criticisms were aired in The Massachusetts Daily Collegian, where commentator Hannah Sparks asserted that the coverage of the Delhi rape case in US media has been more extensive than the Stubenville High School rape case that occurred in the United States in the same year, and that this illustrates the extensive hypocrisy of American media commentators who attack Indians. [121] Author and activist Eve Ensler, who organized One Billion Rising, a global campaign to end violence against women and girls, said that the gang rape and murder has been a huge turning point in India and around the world. Speaking on Democracy Now Ensler said that "India is really leading the way for the world" in efforts to address violence against women. Ensler said that she had traveled to India at the time of the rape and murder and that after "...having worked every day of my life for

the last 15 years on sexual violence, I have never seen anything like that, where sexual violence broke through the consciousness and was on the front page, nine articles in every paper every day, in the center of every discourse, in the center of the college students discussions, in the center of any restaurant you went in. And I think whats happened in India, India is really leading the way for the world. Its really broken through. They are actually fast-tracking laws. They are looking at sexual education. They are looking at the bases of patriarchy and masculinity and how all that leads to sexual violence."[122] [edit]International

reaction

The American embassy released a statement on 29 December, offering their condolences to the woman's family and stating "we also recommit ourselves to changing attitudes and ending all forms of gender-based violence, which plagues every country in the world".[123] In Paris, people participated in a march to the Indian embassy where a petition was handed over asking for action to make India safer for women. [124] UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon issued this statement: "Violence against women must never be accepted, never excused, never tolerated. Every girl and woman has the right to be respected, valued and protected" [125] United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, who called on the Government of India and the Government of Delhi "to do everything in their power to take up radical reforms, ensure justice and reach out with robust public services to make womens lives more safe and secure".[126] Demonstrations have also been held in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka. The protests there have taken inspiration from the Indian protests, but are also focusing on local issues about rape and domestic violence. [127] [edit]Results

of protests

In view of the widespread protests, governments in the centre and various states announced several steps to ensure women's safety. The Karnataka state government announced the launch of a24/7 dedicated helpline (1091) which will be operated by the state police to register sexual abuse complaints from women. [128] It also is checking the possibility of setting up fast track courts to dispose of pending cases pertaining to crime against women.[129] The Tamil Nadu government also announced a 13-point action plan to ensure safety of women in Tamil Nadu and said that incidents of sexual assault would be treated as a grave crime and probes would be entrusted to top police officials. The chief minister also said that daily hearings would be conducted in all sexual abuse cases in the state for speedy trials at

specially constituted fast track courts and women prosecutors would be appointed as government counsels.[130] The Jammu and Kashmir government also announced plans to bring in changes in the state's laws against sexual offences and gender crimes. The Himachal Pradesh government has decided to set up state and districtlevel committees to review progress of all cases of crime against women. [130] [edit]J

S Verma Committee and changes in law

Further information: Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 On 22 December 2012, a judicial committee headed by J. S. Verma, a former Chief Justice of India, was appointed by the Central government to submit a report, within 30 days, to suggest amendments to criminal law to sternly deal with sexual assault cases. The committee has urged the public in general and particularly eminent jurists, legal professionals, NGOs, womens groups and civil society to share "their views, knowledge and experience suggesting possible amendments in the criminal and other relevant laws to provide for quicker investigation, prosecution, and trial, and also enhanced punishment for criminals accused of committing sexual assault of an extreme nature against women.".[131] The Committee held its first meeting on 26 December 2012 and it had received more than 6000 emails with suggestions by then.[132] The Committee submitted it's report after 29 days, after considering 80,000 suggestions received by them during the period. The report indicated that failures on the part of the Government and Police were the root cause behind crimes against women. Major suggestions of the report included the need to review AFSPA in conflict areas, maximum punishment for rape as life imprisonment and not death penalty, clear ambiguity over control of Delhi Police etc. [133][134] On 26 December 2012, a one-person commission of inquiry headed by a former Delhi High Court judge, Usha Mehra, was set up to identify lapses and determine responsibility in relation to the incident. It will also suggest measures to make Delhi and the wider National Capital Region safer for women. The report is to be submitted within three months and will be tabled in Parliament along with action taken by the government.[135] A 13-member special task force headed by Union Home Secretary was constituted on 1 January 2013 to look into safety issues of women in Delhi and review the functioning of the city police on a fortnightly basis. The task force comprises the Delhi city police commissioner, Delhi chief secretary, chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women, special commissioners of police (traffic and law & order), NDMC chairperson, city transport commissioner, joint secretary (UT) in the home ministry, commissioners of East, North and South Delhi Municipal Corporations and

excise commissioner of the city. The task force may co-opt any such member/task force that it may deem fit.[136] The Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013 was promulgated by the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, on 3 February 2013 which provides for amendment of Indian Penal Code, Indian Evidence Act, and Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 on laws related to sexual offences.[137][138] The Ordinance provides for death penalty in case of rape. According to Minister of Law and Justice, Ashwani Kumar, 90 percent of the suggestions given by the Verma Committee Report has been incorporated into the Ordinance.[139]