Indian police shoot dead 4 rape suspects
December 6, 2019
Four men were shot and killed by police as they attempted to escape during a visit to a crime scene in Hyderabad, said an Indian police official on Friday.
They were suspected of raping and killing a 27-year-old veterinary doctor. The case sparked protests across India after the victim's burned body was found last week in an underpass the day after she went missing.
Read more:Is India the worst place in the world to be a woman?
Suspects tried to grab a firearm
The police had taken the suspects to reconstruct the crime scene, the rape and the area where the victim was burned around 0.5 kilometers away.
"The accused tried to snatch [the police officers'] weapons, and there was a cross-fire. In this, all the four accused died," said N Prakash Reddy, a deputy commissioner of police in Shamshabad, near Hyderabad.
Two policemen were also reportedly injured in the incident.
Women praise police
Lawmaker Shobha Karandlaje of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) congratulated the police before adding "the country needs to protect our daughters, perpetrators must be given stringent punishments!"
Asha Devi, a mother whose daughter was raped and subsequently died in 2012 in another high-profile case also praised the police saying that they "did a great job," according to ANI, south Asian news agency.
The fatal shooting comes a day after a rape victim in Uttar Pradesh, northern India, was set on fire as she made her way to a case hearing.
Women in India are calling for more to be done to ensure their safety in the country.
kmm/rt (AP/ Reuters)