A five-year-old rape victim has been
abandoned in a leading Indian hospital by her parents, it was revealed
today amid fierce protests over the handling of sexual assault cases in
the country.
The disclosure
came from opposition leader, Sushma Swaraj, after she visited the New
Delhi hospital to see another five-year-old girl, who was left for dead
having been kidnapped, raped and tortured.
It
coincides with angry protests across the capital, where demonstrators
clashed with police as anger grows over how authorities in the country
handle such cases.
Anger: Women clash with police outside the home of Congress Party chief Sonia Gandhi today
Discontent: Many women are angry at the Indian authorities over the handling of sexual assault cases
Shocking: Today's demonstrations in New Delhi follow the kidnap, rape and torture of a five-year-old girl
The victim who Ms Swaraj had
been at the country's largest state-run hospital to see, was moved there
on Thursday from a local facility in a critical condition.
Medical superintendent D.K.
Sharma, at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, said today she
was improving, after responding well to treatment and her condition
being stabilised.
She had gone missing on April 15 and
was found two days later by neighbours, who heard her crying in a locked
room in the same New Delhi building where she lives with her family.
The
girl had suffered a brutal attack and was found alone. A 24-year-old
man was arrested yesterday in the eastern state of Bihar, around 620
miles from the capital, in connection with the incident and is being
detained and questioned by officers after being flown to New Delhi.
Clashes: Two men are detained by police amid today's fierce protests in the country's capital city
Unrest: Officers say they detained around 50 people but that they were all released a few hours later
Mishandling: Police are accused of ignore the complaints from the parents of India's latest rape victim
It comes four months after the
fatal gang rape of a young woman on a New Delhi bus, which sparked
outrage across India over the mistreatment of women.
For
the second consecutive day, protesters gathered outside the police
headquarters in the capital, angry over allegations that police ignored
complaints from parents of the latest victim.
Officers
are said to have been reluctant to investigate her disappearance and
that they offered the family 2,000 rupees (£25) to stay silent.
Around 100 Bharatiya Janata Party
supporters also demonstrated today outside the home of the chief of the
ruling Congress Party, Sonia Gandhi.
Revealed: India's opposition leader revealed another rape victim, also five, has been abandoned by her parents
Calls for change: There have been a number of high-profiled cases of sexual abuse in India
Demands: Protesters were demanding the government ensure the safety and women and girls in the capital
They were demanding the government ensure the safety and security of women and girls in the city.
The protesters also called for the
Delhi police chief to be removed from office and for police officials
accused of failing to act on the parents' complaint to be dismissed.
Police said they detained more than
50 protesters when they tried to break down barricades on the road
leading to Ms Gandhi's house, but released them a few hours later.
Officers also placed restrictions on
the gathering of more than four people on the main avenue in the heart
of New Delhi after university students planned to hold a demonstration.
The Telegraph reported that Bharatiya
Janata Party leader, Ms Swaraj, left the hospital after seeing the
young victim, and said: 'I saw another five year old girl child in the
next room.
'She is
also a rape victim. She was found abandoned in the AIIMS Campus. She
says her father is a Rickshaw puller. She misses her mother but does not
want to go home.
'Doctors
told me that only few days back, they discharged a male child who was a
victim of sodomy. I think we should hang these criminals and save our
children.'
An
11-year-old girl is also being treated at the hospital, having suffered
serious internal injuries when she was gang-raped last August.
'The gruesome assault reminds us once again of the need root out this sort of depravity'
Action: India's politicians have passed tougher punishments for rape, including the death penalty
Abhorrent: The fatal gang-rape of a woman last year sparked a wave of anger across the country
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
called for changes in attitudes toward women in India, where there has
been a fierce debate since December's gang rape about the routine
mistreatment of females.
'The
gruesome assault on the little girl a few days back reminds us once
again of the need to work collectively to root out this sort of
depravity from our society,' he said at a meeting with civil servants.
The
fatal beating and gang rape of a young woman aboard a moving New Delhi
bus sparked outrage and spurred the government to pass tough laws for
crimes against women.
These included the death penalty for repeat offenders or for rape attacks that lead to the victim's death.
Catalogue of cases: another young girl, aged 11, remains in hospital after being gang-rape in August
Tough talk: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called for changes in attitudes toward women in India
Activists: Hundreds of women were among the crowd of protesters in New Delhi today
DAILYMAIL
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