DCW chief sits on indefinite hunger strike against recent incidents of rape, Delhi police stop her

Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chief Swati Maliwal sat on an indefinite hunger strike at Jantar Mantar on Tuesday against the recent incidents of rape.

Earlier she had alleged that police had not given her permission to hold the protest.

Maliwal also wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding that rapists be hanged within six months of their conviction and cited the recent incidents of the gangrape and murder of a Hyderabad veterinarian and the brutal rape of a six-year-old girl in Rajasthan.

"My demand to PM is that we want capital punishment for the rapists of minor and major victims. The accused in the Hyderabad case must be hanged. Last year, I sat on protest and within 10 days, the government made a law that the rapists of minors will get capital punishment within six months, but this did not happen.

"Now, I want PM to implement the law. I am demanding strict and swift punishment. We need to enhance the infrastructure for a better implementation of the law. In Delhi, there is a shortage of 66,000 police officers and 45 fast track courts," Maliwal said at Jantar Mantar.

Responding to her allegations, the Delhi police said that they have not rejected the demand of holding the protest.

Seeking to clarify the matter, police said a letter was sent to the DCW for obtaining details of the protest, mode of transport, microphone arrangements and the number of protesters who were supposed to take part in it, with a copy of an undertaking to be filled according to the Supreme Court guidelines.

The details regarding it is awaited, they said.

But DCW chief said that the police are trying to stop her from sitting on a protest. They did not let the team instal microphone, toilets and tents by barricading the entire area. Can a woman not quietly sit and observe fast in our country? she asked in a tweet. and said that she is determined to continue with her protest:

With inputs from PTI