Gang rape victim pleads for permission to be euthanized after being drugged and attacked by three men in India
A 36-year-old Dalit woman has asked for permission to be euthanized after claiming she was brutally raped by three men in India.
The unnamed victim, who hails from a village near Puranpur in Pilibhit district of Uttar Pradesh, wrote a letter to Indian President Droupadi Murmu following the alleged sexual assault that took place on May 14.
She claims she was attacked by a man named Mohammad Azim, 35, and two of his colleagues, who allegedly gave her a drink laced with a sedative that left her unable to fight back.
Azim, an electrician and repairman, was known to the victim and is said to have used this fame to gain her trust.
She is now asking authorities for permission to end her life Times of India reports. It is unclear how serious the injuries she sustained in the attack are.
It is unlikely that the victim will obtain consent because Indian law only allows passive euthanasia or ‘right to die’ through withdrawal of life support from critically ill patients with no hope of recovery.
Sex crimes remain a serious concern in India, with the country recording alarmingly high rates of sexual violence (activists protest in New Delhi against the rape and murder of a 9-year-old girl in 2021)
The survivor reportedly approached the local police station to file a complaint in the days following the alleged attack, but her request was initially denied.
It was only after she filed a written complaint with Superintendent of Police Avinash Pandey that a First Information Report (FIR) was filed on May 24 – ten days after she claimed to have suffered the attack.
A medical examination was conducted after the FIR, but the survivor fears the delay of more than 10 days may have made the results inconclusive, the Times of India reported.
The victim also criticized the police for charging the suspect under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which deals with rape, instead of Section 376D, which specifically deals with gang rape.
Sex crimes remain a major problem in India, with the country recording alarmingly high rates of sexual violence.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), 28,046 rape cases were reported across India in 2020 – an average of 77 rape cases per day that year.
In 2021, this figure rose to 31,677 cases.
Dalit women in particular are disproportionately affected due to their marginalized social status in India. They often face discrimination and violence and have little access to justice.
Despite several legal reforms, many survivors face significant barriers in the justice system, including delayed investigations, insensitive handling of cases by authorities and social stigma.