12 years after Nirbhaya horror, mother Asha Devi says daughters of India are still not safe

By Sunita Iyer | First Published Dec 16, 2024, 9:18 PM IST

Asha Devi, mother of Nirbhaya, reflects on the lack of progress in ensuring safety for women, despite new laws, sharing her ongoing pain and calling for systemic change.

Twelve years after the horrific Nirbhaya gang-rape and murder that deeply shocked the nation, the victim's mother, Asha Devi, on Monday expressed that daughters still aren't safe in India.

On the night of December 16, 2012, a 23-year-old physiotherapy student, known as Nirbhaya (name changed), was brutally raped and assaulted by six men in a moving bus in South Delhi, before being thrown out. She succumbed to her injuries on December 29 at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore.

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Four of the men convicted in the gang-rape and murder — Mukesh Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Sharma (26), and Akshay Kumar Singh (31) — were executed by hanging on March 20 at Delhi's Tihar Jail. Their execution marked the end of this brutal chapter and led to the introduction of stricter anti-rape laws.

At the first ‘National Convention on Prevention of Violence Against Women and Children’ on Monday, Asha Devi delivered an emotional speech, reflecting on the incident and the continued need for change.

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"It is with great pain that I want to say that even after 12 years the circumstances have not changed…The daughters of the country are not safe…When I was struggling to get justice for my daughter, I knew that she was no more and that she would never return but I remembered her words that the perpetrators should get such punishment that such an incident is not repeated," she said.

Asha Devi reflects on the ineffectiveness of laws and legal system

Asha Devi recalled her involvement in numerous events aimed at ensuring the safety of the nation's daughters. However, despite the introduction of new laws and countless discussions, she expressed that all her efforts had been in vain, as the situation had not improved.

"I am unable to understand some incidents where parents have lost their daughter but the case does not reach the court. It takes anything from six months to one year to identify the culprit. How can we then expect that our daughters will be safe and the parents who have lost their daughters will get justice?" she asked.

Referring to the RG Kar incident in Kolkata, Asha Devi pointed out that the truth of what actually happened remains unknown to this day.

"Chaliye humein to insaaf mil gaya, ek tassali hui, lekin us tassali ka kya jahan kisi ki jaan chali gayi aur aaj bhi humara system usi halat mein hai (I got justice and this is my solace but what good is such solace when a life has been lost and the system continues to remain the same)," she said.

Nirbhaya's mother makes emotional appeal to Centre

Nirbhaya's mother appealed to the Centre and state governments to take a moment to reflect on why, despite the extensive 'system' of police, laws, and other measures, nothing had changed.

"I am not blaming anyone, but I am pained that our daughters are not safe, be it in school, office anywhere. Usually for small daughters, things are even worse and when such a situation exists in towns and cities, what can one say about villages, where most incidents go unnoticed," she said.

"Jo bhi humara kanoon hai uspe sahi mayane mein kaam ho taki humari bacchiyon ko insaaf mile (Whatever laws we have they should be a law in real sense so that our daughters get justice)," added Asha Devi.

Narrating her pain, she shared that she had not yet come to terms with the loss of her daughter, and that her smiling face was often a facade, one she put on like an actor.

"Hum aaj bhi khul ke saans nahi le pate hain (I still feel suffocated)," she said underlining the burden in her heart.

"Sab logon ki milakar – sarkar, police – ko aisa kuch karna chahiye taki jo log aaj bhi sangharsh kar rahe hain, unhe insaaf mile , humari bacchiyon surakshit ho, aaj mission jo shuru hua hai wo kamyaab ho," (Everyone, including the government and police, should come together and do something which ensures that people get justice for their daughters, our daughters should be safe and the mission which starts today is successful)," Nirbhaya’s mother added.

Nirbhaya was raped and brutalized by six men, who left her on the road, abandoned and left for dead. Her friend, who was with her, was also beaten severely and thrown out of the bus.

She was so horrifically violated that her internal organs were exposed when she was rushed to the hospital. After fighting for her life for two weeks, she passed away in a Singapore hospital.

Of the six attackers, Ram Singh allegedly committed suicide in Tihar Jail days after the trial began, while the juvenile involved was released in 2015 after serving three years in a correctional facility.

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