Hang child rapists within a month, says Uma Bharti

Nagpur: Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti on Tuesday demanded that child rapists be hanged within a month after fast-tracking trials in such cases. "The government should set up fast track courts to try rape cases within 15 days and the rapist should be hanged within a month. Government should decide upon the mercy petition, if any, of the convicts in such cases within 30 days to ensure that the culprit is hanged," she said.

Bharti was speaking to reporters after visiting the five-year-old rape victim from Madhya Pradesh who is battling for life at a hospital in Nagpur. "I was shocked to see the trauma of the girl child lying in a ward here. I have spoken to the Madhya Pradesh Home Minister just now and conveyed my anguish," the BJP leader said.

Referring to the rape of a five-year-old girl in Delhi, Bharti said these incidents have deepened the sense of insecurity among people regarding safety of their children. "I am perturbed over such incidents, be it in Seoni or Delhi. A sense of insecurity is prevailing among girls, their mothers and fathers when they are travelling...," Bharti said. She evaded direct reply on the allegation by Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh that BJP was "politicising" the rape incident.