Anger is growing across India after an eight-month-old baby girl was raped in the capital city of Delhi on Sunday.
The infant is in critical but stable condition after being admitted to a hospital, local media reported. Police said the incident happened in the family’s home and have arrested the baby’s 28-year-old cousin, according to BBC News.
According to Al Jazeera, the infant’s internal organs were damaged during the assault and she had to undergo a three-hour operation.
The chief of the Delhi Commission for Women, who visited the girl Monday evening, described her injuries as “horrific.”
“I can still hear her screams and cries. As DCW chief, I feel horrified at this abuse of a child, I feel as if I have been raped. She is on life support right now,” Maliwal told Al Jazeera.
The rape created an outcry against sexual violence in India as activists press officials for stricter laws and more police resources to protect children.
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In 2012, the fatal gang rape of a 23-year-old medical student on a bus in Delhi sparked a movement against sexual assault in India, which drove the government to create tougher anti-rape legislation.
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Last year, India’s Supreme Court ruled that sex with an underage wife also constitutes rape.
Despite the change in legislation, rape among children in India is on the rise.
According to National Crime Records Bureau data for 2016, incidents of rape of children in India increased by over 82 per cent (19,765 recorded cases) compared with 2015 (10,854 recorded cases).
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