New Delhi (Sputnik): Police in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh paraded four persons on the streets of Bhopal after they were arrested on suspicion of gang-raping a teenager. As they were paraded in public, angry onlookers pelted them with stones, while some women even thrashed them with shoes and sticks, according to local media.
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT
A senior journalist from Bhopal says the state administration has ordered the police to crack down heavily on crimes against women.
"The incident is not a routine but it might have happened following chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's recent call to the police to crack down on crime against women" senior journalist P. Naveen told Sputnik.
According to the police, one of the rapists was the victim's lover, who allegedly blackmailed her to accompany him to a room where he was joined by three of his friends to rape her.
"All four accused were booked for gang-rape and abduction, among other charges. The girl's former boyfriend asked her on Saturday to meet him at a restaurant, claiming he had something important to tell her. While she reached, he snatched her mobile phone and told her that if she wanted it back, she would have to come with him to his friend's room. She was forced to go with him on his motorcycle," senior police officer Rahul Lodha told the media.
Reactions on social media have been mixed. While some people supported the idea of parading rapists in order to instill fear among criminals, others say it was unbecoming of the police to expose the accused to public wrath, as their alleged crime is yet to be proven in a court of law.
Four gang-rape accused paraded in public by Bhopal police and women openly thrashed them with slaps, sticks and shoes.
Bhopal cops parade 4 gang-rape accused on road, force them to do sit-ups in public https://t.co/WIcJwkJJgZpic.twitter.com/VSSs0FZIDy