India Divided Over Hyderabad Encounter

Four accused in Hyderabad vet’s rape and murder were killed in an encounter with the police this morning. While the police, in an official statement, has called it an act of self-defense, the events seem to have divided the nation in terms of their opinion. Some people have called it Justice, others have raised questions over the circumstances surrounding the encounter. Whereas on one hand, Nirbhaya’s parents welcomed the move, on the hand congress leader Shashi Tharoor struck a note of caution.

Nirbhaya was a 23-year-old paramedic student who died days after being gang-raped in December 2012, in Delhi. The case had shocked the nation to its core. And now, Nirbhaya’s mother has come forward and appealed to authorities to not punish the police officers involved in the encounter. Nirbhaya's father also welcomed the news and said the family's wait for justice ended early. "The family of the Hyderabad doctor will not have to wait for justice for seven years like us. Police did the right thing," he said.

Congress leader and Lok Sabha member Shashi Tharoor, however, said extrajudicial killings were not acceptable. "Agree in principle. We need to know more, for instance, if the criminals were armed, the police may have been justified in opening fire preemptively. Until details emerge we should not rush to condemn. But extra-judicial killings are otherwise unacceptable in a society of laws," he tweeted.

Congress MP from Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu, Karti P Chidambaram also criticized the police over the encounter. In a tweet, Karti said, "Rape is a heinous crime. It must be dealt with strictly under the provisions of law. While I hold no brief for the alleged perpetrators of this dastardly act, 'encounter' killings are blot to our system.

Rekha Sharma, National Commission for Women chief, said she was happy that the accused were dead, but justice should have been done through proper prosecution.