It’s alleged she was accosted by six men who overpowered her husband when he tried to intervene and gang raped her in front of him.
The 25-year-old woman from Dantiamuha village had gone to the hospital in Mayurbhanj, in Baripada, on Sunday with her husband to visit her sick brother.
Six men were later arrested and sent for medical examinations, reported DNA India.
Protesters demanded the men be tried in India’s new fast track courts that deal specifically with crimes of a sexual nature, set up in the wake of the gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old on a Delhi bus on December 16.
The five accused of the attack started their trial today within a courtroom closed to the public and media.
They face a maximum sentence of death by hanging if convicted.It comes as a government panel criticised the ‘apathy’ of police and officials and recommended India strictly enforce sexual assault laws, commit to holding speedy rape trials and change the antiquated penal code to protect women.
The panel appointed to recommend suggestions to overhaul the criminal justice system’s handling of violence against women, received a staggering 80,000 suggestions from women’s and rights groups and thousands of ordinary citizens.
Among the panel’s suggestions were a ban on a traumatic vaginal exam of rape victims and an end to political interference in sex crime cases.
It has also suggested the appointment of more judges to help speed up India’s sluggish judicial process and clear millions of pending cases.
