Advertisement

Unrest flares in India over gang rape

Indian police have stopped protesters from marching to the village where a young woman died after being gang raped this week; another case of violence against women in India that's sparked nationwide outrage.

"If you are on women's side, then why are rapes happening every other day. In our country and more specifically in Uttar Pradesh, every other day there are sexual assault and other crimes happening against women."

Police imposed emergency laws on Hathras village in Uttar Pradesh state... as authorities barred gatherings of five or more people and said they would block politicians from the district.

India’s opposition Congress Party says 250 of its members were briefly detained, including leaders Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi.

Indian news agency ANI showed police roughing up Rahul as he walked on the side of the road.

Party General Secretary Priyanka said the government has to stop such crimes against women.

"The government will have to take responsibility for the safety of women … The manner in which women are being tortured in the state should be completely stopped and strict action should be taken against the culprits."

Four men have been arrested over the gang rape of the 19-year-old, a member of the often discriminated against Dalit community, who died from her injuries on Tuesday.

Her brother told Reuters her body was cremated against the family’s wishes. Something officials deny.

India has a shocking number of rapes – in a country of nearly 1.4 billion people, a rape is reported every 15 minutes according to official data.

Few suspects are ever caught or brought to justice.

But despite the outcry, even more cases of gang-rape were reported in Uttar Pradesh state on Thursday.