By Brian Lanciault
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

NEW DELHI, India–Leaders of Indian ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) condemned the rape of a 51-year-odl Danish tourist.  The incident occurred near the New Delhi railway station.  AAP stressed a need for expedient court proceedings and a desire to reign in the authority of the Delhi Police, restructuring the institution under the state government.

The 51-year-old was robbed and then raped by a gang of six on Wednesday afternoon when she asked for directions to her hotel.

“This is a dangerous situation, and he (Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal) has spoken to the lieutenant-governor (Najeeb Jung). Now the LG, the chief minister and the police commissioner will meet to review the rape incidents that have occurred in the last one year,” Delhi education minister Manish Sisodia told reporters.

“We will also request the Chief Justice of India to take all the rape cases to fast track courts, so that the strictest punishment is meted out to the culprits,” Sisodia said.

Scrutiny of sexual violence in India has grown since the 2012 gang rape and murder of a student on a Delhi bus. The government tightened laws on sexual violence last year after widespread protests following the attack.

AAP leader Kumar Vishwas stressed that the Delhi Police must be brought under the jurisdiction of the state government to preserve efficiency and integrity. Delhi Police are currently under the jurisdiction of the Union government.

“Delhi Police should be brought under the state government. This is an old demand of ours, so the chief minister and central government should make an effort,” Vishwas said.

He said that since Delhi Police remain under the central government, they cannot work properly.

Demanding a home minister on the state level, Vishwas said: “If any such incidents happen in Delhi, there should be a home minister, so that he can look after the Delhi affairs. It otherwise becomes a long affair which includes contacting and consulting the centre.”

The Danish woman, who came to India on January 1, went to visit a museum on Tuesday afternoon but then lost her way back to her hotel in Paharganj.  Paharganj is a major tourist city at the center of Delhi.

Around 4pm a group of men lured her to an isolated spot where she was robbed of her iPad and cash and then raped by six men, one of whom held a knife.

“She reached her hotel and reported the incident to the manager who called in the police and the investigation is now under way,” police spokesman, Rajan Bhagat said.

No arrests have been made yet, but police are questioning a number of men in connection with the attack

 For more information, please see:

Times of India–Danish woman’s gang rape: AA seeks control over Delhi police–15 January 2014

BBC News–Danish woman gang-raped in Indian capital Delhi— 15 January 2014

The Globe and Mail–Danish tourist gang-raped, robbed after getting lost in New Delhi— 15 January 2014

National Post–Danish tourist gang-raped in Inian capital after asking for directions, police say— 15 January 2014