Rapist arrested

Delhi seethes in anger, protesters demand justice for child victim

• Accused Manoj Kumar picked up from his in-law's house in Muzaffarpur
• 5-year-old's condition stable, say doctors
• Shocked Pranab calls for introspection
• Sonia visits hospital, calls for action, not words
• Give us some time, we'll take action: Shinde
• Sushma Swaraj: Hang child rapists and child abusers

New Delhi (PTI): In a throwback to days of December last, Delhi on Saturday seethed in anger over the rape of the five-year-old girl and police insensitivity in dealing with it as protests erupted demanding justice for the victim and removal of Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar.A The condition of the girl stated to be stable though she has suffered serious injuries in the assault, doctors attending on her said.

Meanwhile, police arrested the accused Manoj Kumar (22) from his in-laws' house in Muzaffarpur in Bihar early on Saturday. He fled the capital within an hour of committing the crime fearing the victim had died. He is being brought to Delhi for interrogation.

As the horrific details of the rape emerged, President Pranab Mukherjee urged for "urgent introspection" to identify causes behind repeated failure to ensure security of women and children, while Congress chief Sonia Gandhi sent out a tough message to authorities that "action and not words" are necessary to stop recurrence of such incidents. She later visited the child at the AIIMS and consoled the parents.

Shocked and anguished at the incident, Mukherjee sought urgent steps for bringing perpetrators to immediate justice. "As a society, we must introspect at the erosion of values and our repeated failure to ensure the security of our women and children. We must identify the causes and find solutions for such criminal depravity in our midst," Mukherjee was quoted as saying by Rashtrapati Bhavan spokesperson.

Sushma Swaraj, Opposition leader in the Lok Sabha, called for death penalty to child rapists and child abusers. Though not in thousands, a large number of people hit the streets in a reminder of the protests that rocked the capital after the December 16 gang-rape and assault of a girl in a moving bus.

Protesters belonging to women's organisations, BJP, CPI(M), CPI, AAP, and their students and youth outfits clashed with the police when they tried to break the barricades and enter into the police headquarters near the ITO in central Delhi where the main roads were closed to traffic. A protester was detained for trying to enter the police headquarters.

Besides PHQ, protests were also witnessed at the residences of Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, AIIMS and Gandhinagar police station in east Delhi.

Security was tightened in PHQ, AIIMS with deployment of armed police personnel and at the residences of Shinde and Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit. Protesters also took to the streets near AIIMS where the girl was shifted to last evening for treatment. Rejecting the suspension of the Sub-Inspector of the station, the protesters demanded their arrest for beating up young girls who went to protest at the police station.

They shouted slogans against the Police Commissioner, Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and the Union Home Minister accusing them of inaction and doing nothing to change the way police worked. Shinde promised action against policemen who are found to be guilty of trying to hush up the rape case.

"An inquiry is going on to find out if there was any lapse on the part of police. We will take action against the policemen who are found to be guilty," Shinde said.