#trending: Brutal murder of 16-year-old girl in public sparks outrage in India, netizens call passers-by 'cowardly'
CCTV footage shows the accused stabbing the victim repeatedly on a street in full view of people walking by.
- A surveillance video capturing the gruesome murder of a teenage girl on the streets of Delhi has sparked public outcry in India
- The 16-year-old girl was stabbed 22 times with a knife, then bludgeoned to death with a stone slab by her alleged boyfriend in full view of bystanders
- However, nobody stepped in to stop the attacker or assist the victim
- The viral footage has sparked renewed anger and outrage over public apathy in India
BY
IZZAH IMRAN
Published May 30, 2023Updated May 30, 2023
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DELHI — A 20-year-old man has been arrested for stabbing and killing a 16-year-old girl along a busy street in the Indian capital of Delhi on Sunday (May 28) evening.
Surveillance footage capturing the brutal murder shows the teen being stabbed 22 times with a knife and then bludgeoned to death by her alleged boyfriend.
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In the video, which has now gone viral, some passers-by pause briefly to watch in horror, while a number of people are seen walking past without intervening or stopping the attack.
According to Indian media reports, the victim named Sakshi had been visiting a close friend in the neighbourhood of Shahbad Dairy.
“It was my daughter’s birthday, so she had gone shopping. She bought clothes and told me she was going to meet another friend of hers. But she never came back,” the victim’s friend Neetu told Times Now.
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Delhi police believe Sakshi was attacked by her boyfriend, identified as 20-year-old Sahil, following a quarrel between them.
In the viral video, the accused can be seen viciously stabbing the victim multiple times in full view of the public.
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At one point, a male passer-by attempts to pull the knife away from Sahil, but the accused wrestles his arm free and continues to stab the victim. The passer-by then runs away.
As the violent attack continues, several people are seen walking by. Although some stopped to observe the scene, nobody stepped forward to offer the victim any help.
Sahil goes on to kick Sakshi’s motionless body multiple times, before grabbing a stone slab to strike at her head repeatedly.
He then briefly walks away but returns to bludgeon her with the slab and kick her a few more times before leaving.
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Sahil was arrested in the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh hours after the murder, according to numerous reports citing senior Delhi police official Ravi Kumar Singh.
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NETIZENS SLAM PUBLIC APATHY, CALL FOR HARSH PUNISHMENT
Hashtags such as #DelhiMurder and #DelhiCrime were trending on Twitter following the release of the crime footage.In a tweet on Monday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal described the murder as "very sad and unfortunate", adding that "criminals have become fearless”.
The chairperson of the National Commission for Women, Rekha Sharma, told news agency ANI that the crime showed the "insensitivity" of the people of Delhi.
"There were several people at the spot when the incident took place but no one took any action to help the girl. The case should be heard in a fast-track court and the verdict should come as early as possible," she said.
Many social media users echoed this sentiment, slamming the passers-by seen in the video for apathy.
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One Twitter user wrote: “Shameful attitude of cowardly neighbours and bystanders. He (the attacker) seems to be sure no one would stop him. It's (a) failure by the neighbours. Pathetic.”
Some netizens opined that the victim could have survived if people had banded together to come to her aid.
A Facebook user said: “I just wish people around her would have stopped him together then at least there would be a chance for the girl to survive. It's so sad to look on helplessly.”
Others called for swift justice and for the accused to be dealt with the death penalty.
This is not the first time citizens in India have been criticised for not helping victims of crime.
In 2017, a woman was raped on a busy pavement in broad daylight in the southern city of Vishakhapatnam. Many people walked by despite being aware of the crime that was taking place.
A rickshaw driver nearby had filmed the assault, which led to the subsequent arrest of the rapist.
In December 2012, similar outrage and reflection followed the gang rape and subsequent death of a 23-year-old physiotherapy student on a bus in Delhi.
Her male friend, who was also assaulted but survived, recalled how they lay bleeding for 25 minutes before anyone came to assist them.
