Protests have intensified following the rape and murder of a trainee doctor, while the Indian state has passed a law mandating the death penalty for rapists.
Demonstrations erupted in West Bengal after the bloodied body of a 31-year-old trainee doctor was found in a government hospital in Kolkata, with protesters demanding justice from the local government.
The law imposing the death penalty for those convicted of rape has been approved by the state assembly, but it still requires the president’s approval to become law.
The new law in West Bengal is symbolic, as India’s criminal code is uniformly applied across the country.
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Presidential approval may provide an exception, allowing it to become state law.
This legislation increases the punishment for rape from a minimum of 10 years to life imprisonment or the death penalty. Following the doctor’s murder, doctors went on strike, and thousands of citizens across India rallied in support; however, many doctors have since returned to work.
