The gruesome gang rape of a 23-year-old woman on 16 December 2012 – or the Nirbhaya case – stirred India's collective conscience. But 11 years on, the battle for women's safety in the country is far from won.
As we remember Nirbhaya's struggle – and that of any woman who has been a victim of gender-based violence, The Quint is reposting articles and videos from our coverage of the case over the years.
"Gang rape in South Delhi" – this was the SMS that flashed on my phone on 17 December 2012, exactly a decade ago. At the time, I couldn't have guessed the impact this case would have on our laws, our society, and me, personally.
I was a crime reporter with a national daily in the capital back then, and I knew what the keyword, 'South Delhi', meant. I had to relay information to my editor, and for that, I had to urgently find out more details of the crime – the where, what, when, and why. So, I called the Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) South, Chhaya Sharma.
The call went unanswered. Within minutes, however, more details trickled in – a 23-year-old paramedic student, a moving bus, Vasant Kunj, Life of Pi, 9 pm. It was chilling. How could this happen to a woman who was my age, in a part of the city we all considered safer than the rest of the areas, after watching a movie I would have watched too?