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India Teen Commits Suicide After Police Pressure Her To Drop Gang Rape Case, Marry Attacker

Teen Commits Suicide After Police Pressure Her To Drop Gang Rape Case, Marry Attacker
Agence France Presse
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A 17-year-old Indian girl who was gang-raped committed suicide after police pressured her to drop the case and marry one of her attackers, police and a relative said on Thursday.

Amid the ongoing uproar over the gang-rape of a student on a bus in New Delhi earlier this month, the latest case has again shone the spotlight on the police's handling of sex crimes.

One police officer has been sacked and another suspended over their conduct after the assault during the festival of Diwali on November 13 in the Patiala region in the Punjab, according to officials.

The teenager was found dead on Wednesday night after swallowing poison.

Inspector General Paramjit Singh Gill said that the teenager had been "running from pillar to post to get her case registered" but officers failed to open a formal inquiry.

"One of the officers tried to convince her to withdraw the case," Gill, the police chief for the area, told AFP.

Before her death, there had been no arrests over her case although three people were detained on Thursday. Two of them were her alleged male attackers and the third was a suspected woman accomplice.

The victim's sister told Indian television that the teenager had been urged to either accept a cash settlement or marry one of her attackers.

"The police started pressuring her to either reach a financial settlement with her attackers or marry one of them," her sister told the NDTV network.

Meanwhile, the Press Trust of India reported that a police officer has been suspended for allegedly refusing to register a rape complaint in the northern state of Chhattisgar.

The woman and her husband later brought the case to the attention of a more senior officer and a hunt has now been launched for her attacker, an auto rickshaw driver.

Official figures show that 228,650 of the total 256,329 violent crimes recorded last year in India were against women.

The real figure is thought to be much higher as so many women are reluctant to report attacks to the police.

During an address to the chief ministers of India's states on Thursday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh pledged to bring in new laws to cover attacks on women.

Copyright (2012) AFP. All rights reserved.

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Before You Go

Gang Rape Protests In India
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An Indian protester holds a placard during a protest against a recent gang rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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An Indian police officer, left, sports a cricket helmet as policemen stand near barricades and stop protesters on their way to India Gate while protesting against a gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Tsering Topgyal) (credit:AP)
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Indian students protesting against a recent gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, take out a rally in Kolkata, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Bikas Das) (credit:AP)
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Underprivileged Indians watch a protest against a recent gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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An Indian protester shouts slogans as he is stopped by police during a protest against a recent gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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A young Indian girl clings to the saree of her mother as she participates in a protest against the recent gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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Indian protesters shout slogans while demonstrating against the recent gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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Indian protesters listen to a speaker during a protest against a recent gang rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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Indian women shout slogans as they protest against a recent gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/ Saurabh Das) (credit:AP)
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Indian women hold placards as they protest against the recent gang-rape of a young woman in a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/ Saurabh Das) (credit:AP)
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Indian demonstrators shout slogans and wave placards as they move towards India Gate in New Delhi on December 27, 2012, during a protest calling for better safety for women following the rape of a student in the Indian capital. (SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
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Kashmiri Sikh students protesting against a brutal gang-rape of a woman on a bus last week in New Delhi, shout slogans in Srinagar, India, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012. (AP Photo/ Dar Yasin) (credit:AP)
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Indian demonstrators shout slogans as they move towards India Gate in New Delhi on December 27, 2012, during a protest calling for better safety for women following the rape of a student in the Indian capital.(SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
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Indian demonstrators shout slogans and wave placards as they move towards India Gate in New Delhi on December 27, 2012, during a protest calling for better safety for women following the rape of a student in the Indian capital.( SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
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Indian people wear black bands to protest against the brutal gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012. (AP Photo/ Saurabh Das) (credit:AP)
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Indian demonstrators hold placards as they shout anti-government slogans during a protest calling for better safety for women in India in New Delhi on December 25, 2012, following the rape of a student in the Indian capital. An Indian policeman injured in clashes during a protest over a gang-rape in New Delhi has died a police spokesman said, as much of the city centre remained sealed off following the violence. (RAVEENDRAN/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:Getty Images)
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An Indian woman shouts slogans during a demonstration against the brutal gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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An Indian anti-riot policeman keeps an eye from behind a police barricade during a demonstration against the brutal gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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Indian students carrying placards shout slogans against last week's gang-rape as they protest in central New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/ Saurabh Das) (credit:AP)
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An Indian woman shouts slogans during a demonstration against the brutal gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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Indian protesters hold placards as they demonstrate against the brutal gang-rape of a woman on a moving bus New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri) (credit:AP)
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