Delhi rape: five charged with murder; sixth underage
03 Jan 2013
The Delhi Police today filed charges against five of the six accused in the brutal gang-rape of a young woman on a Delhi bus on 16 December.
The charges were filed in the Saket metropolitan magistrate's court. As expected, the police have thrown the book at them – the five have been charged with murder, attempt to murder, gang rape, kidnapping, robbery, and destruction of evidence.
Charges against the sixth accused will be filed separately, as he may be a juvenile. His bone density is being analysed to ascertain his age – although DNA tests have confirmed that he was involved in the horrific crime, which ended in the death of the 23-year-old medical intern.
Chief Justice of India Altamas Kabir opened a fast-track trial at the Saket court complex in Delhi last evening, setting a precedent for the trial of rape cases.
Chief Justice Kabir had some hard words for the Delhi Police: "If the Supreme Court directive to remove tinted glasses (from buses) had been followed strictly, this incident may not have happened," he remarked.
The court has fixed 5 January for cognisance of the offence, the chargesheet for which runs into 1,000 pages. The trial in the case will be in camera; the general public will be excluded from the proceedings.
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