Rape in India received extensive media coverage after a fatal gang rape of a student in Delhi in December, 2012, and a village council-ordered gang rape of a young woman in West Bengal in January, 2014.1 Whereas an 8-5% prevalence of sexual violence in the country is among the lowest in the world,23 it is estimated to affect 27-5 million women in India (table). Only 1% of victims of sexual violence report the crime to the police.3 Low reporting to police might in part be because marital rape is not a crime in India. Most sexual violence in India occurs in marriage; 10% of married women report sexual violence from husbands.2 Adolescent wives are most vulnerable, reporting the highest rates of marital sexual violence of any age group.2 Adolescent girls also account for 24% of rape cases in the country,4 although they represent only 9% of the total female population. An estimated 2-5 million adolescent girls (aged 15-19 years) are victims of sexual violence in India.
展开▼
