Three people have been arrested after an accusation of rape in an eastern Indian town this week. The assault was reportedly an act of revenge.
NDTV reports a 25-year-old man allegedly pulled the girl, whose age has been reported as both 10 and 14, out of her home and took her into the forest where he's accused of raping her.
The reason? The girl's brother was accused of trying to molest a woman, which prompted a so-called headman in the town to order the man to rape the girl. According to NDTV, the 25-year-old is the brother of the woman who was molested.
The Indian Express says people in the town saw the girl get dragged away but didn't do anything about it. One villager who saw what happened told the outlet the man who ordered the rape is a "dangerous" and very powerful member of the community.
Now, police have arrested the accused rapist, the man accused of ordering the rape and the brother of the girl who was raped.
It comes after several high-profile instances of rapes in the country. The BBC reports public protests have continued in India since a brutal gang rape on a bus killed a 23-year-old woman in late 2012.
Even after the men involved in the case were sentenced to prison, protestors were out calling for tougher laws to protect women. (Via CNN)
Despite tougher laws now in place, two teenage girls were found dead hanging in a tree in May after they had been raped — sparking more outrage over what some have described as a rape culture in India. (Via Daily Mirror, CNN, The Washington Post)
And that culture is something USA Today reports is difficult to stop. A women's rights activist told the paper: "...many people feel they can get away with anything, an attitude that some of our politicians have gone out their way to encourage."
Some lawmakers in the country still aren't sure that accused rapists should even be punished. The girl from this week's attack remains in the hospital. She could be released Saturday.
