A roller-skating instructor was due in court Monday over the alleged rape of a 6-year-old student that sparked protests Sunday from outraged parents and the student wing of India's ruling party, an official in the Indian city of Bangalore said.
The 30-year-old instructor at a top private school, favored by politicians and local businessmen, in Bangalore was arrested Sunday over the alleged assault earlier this month, the city's police commissioner said.
The student wing of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) on Monday staged a protest outside the Bangalore school against the sexual assault.
With this new case, India again struggles to rebuild its battered reputation over levels of sexual violence in the country.
Public anger erupted after two staff members allegedly raped the girl on the school premises during school hours on July 2. The child is being treated at a hospital.
Sex crimes
Brutal sex crimes are common in India, which has a population of 1.2 billion. New Delhi has the highest number of sex crimes among major cities, with a rape reported every 18 hours, according to police figures.
Unprecedented nationwide protests against the gang rape of a 23-year-old woman on a moving bus in the capital Delhi in December 2012 forced the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's government to pass tougher laws to fight gender crimes.
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2013 or anti-rape law passed in March puts in place a slew of new provisions and tougher punishments, which include criminalizing voyeurism and stalking and making acid attacks and human trafficking specific offences.
One woman is raped every 20 minutes in India, according to the Indian National Crime Records Bureau.
Police estimate only four out of 10 rapes are reported, largely due to victims' fear of being shamed by their families and communities.
One in three rape victims in India is a child, according to UNICEF.
Some information for this report provided by Reuters and AFP.
