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Delhi Gang Rape Victim Dies From Brain Injury
One high profile rape victim in India died last week from swelling of the brain brought on from brain injury, according to The India Times. The 23-year-old woman was gang-raped on a public bus and fought back, causing her attackers to inflict terrible injuries on the girl.
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The woman has not been named, but is one of many rape victims in India to gain media attention due to the lack of police action and brutality of the crimes (read here for sex crime attorneys). As the Montreal Gazette contextualizes the story, “The story shocked India, revealing a sordid side to the country where women face constant harassment and sexual assaults are frequently ignored by police.”
The issue of rape and authorative inaction has sparked protests throughout the country, where most public figures have put the blame on the victims of the rapes for supposedly “dressing provocatively” or simply “being out alone at night”, but the issue is complicated by a culture with strongly entrenched notions of gender and sexuality.
This particular victim fought back, which sadly is likely the reason for her death. “”Brain injury is an important cause for the death. She suffered a cardiac arrest at Safdarjung Hospital on Tuesday. This could have caused the brain injury and she also suffered from multi-organ failure,” Dr. Yatin Mehta explained.
Though the death is ultimately attributed to cardiac arrest, brain injury was an essential factor in her passing. The woman has remained unnamed, but she serves as a rallying cry for protestors across India and the world to change a pattern of inaction.
