After a 23-year-old woman was gang raped and assaulted on a moving bus in south Delhi on 16 December 2012, protests spread across India. Between 21 and 23 December thousands of mostly young people marched from India Gate to Raisina Hill, where police used canes, tear gas and water cannon, and a police constable later died. The government set up the Justice Verma Committee, amended the criminal law in 2013 and created the Nirbhaya Fund; four adult convicts were hanged in March 2020.
Key takeaways
- The December 2012 Delhi gang rape protests began after a 23-year-old woman and her male friend were attacked on a moving bus on 16 December 2012; she died of her injuries in a Singapore hospital on 29 December.
- On 22 and 23 December 2012 thousands of protesters filled the stretch from India Gate to Raisina Hill, and Delhi Police used canes, tear gas and water cannon and imposed Section 144 in New Delhi district.
- Delhi Police said "hooligans" had hijacked a peaceful protest; protesters and the Aam Aadmi Party accused police of beating peaceful demonstrators and arresting the wrong people.
- Constable Subhash Tomar collapsed at India Gate on 23 December and died on 25 December. Police first said protesters beat him and charged eight men with murder, then told the Delhi High Court in March 2013 that there was no evidence linking them to his death.
- The government formed the three-member Justice Verma Committee on 23 December 2012; its 23 January 2013 report led to the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, which defined stalking and voyeurism as crimes and allowed the death penalty in some rape cases.
Background: the attack on 16 December
On the night of 16 December 2012, a 23-year-old physiotherapy student and a male friend boarded a bus in south Delhi after watching a film. Six men, one of them a minor, raped and beat her, assaulted her friend, and threw both off the moving bus IANS via The Peninsula BenarNews.
All six accused were arrested within days AP via Gulf News. Two police officers were suspended after officials said the bus had passed several police barricades without being checked Al Jazeera. Indian law bars identifying a rape victim by name, and this page does not name her BenarNews.
How the protests grew
Protests began within days of the attack and were led mainly by college students. By Saturday 22 December, PTI described it as the sixth day of protests in the capital PTI via The Goan. On Friday 21 December a large crowd had already tried to enter the grounds of Rashtrapati Bhavan IANS via The Peninsula.
Most of those who turned up had no party link, according to IANS, though political groups also joined IANS via Gulf News. Their main demands were faster trials, tougher punishment for rape, including the death penalty, and safety for women in public places AP via CS Monitor. Protests were also reported in Kanpur, Jhansi, Lucknow, Meerut and Kolkata IANS via The Peninsula.
Timeline of the protest week
March to Raisina Hill
Students gathered at India Gate early and marched up Rajpath, breaking security cordons until police stopped them near Raisina Hill, the hill that holds Rashtrapati Bhavan and the North and South Blocks PTI. IANS reported the whole 2.5 km stretch from India Gate to Raisina Hill packed with people IANS.
Canes, tear gas, water cannon
When talks failed and protesters tried to breach the barricades, police fired tear gas and used water cannon. Police caned the crowd at least three times, and some protesters threw stones and damaged buses IANS. The Tribune counted at least 35 injured youths The Tribune; PTI reported a boy, a girl and a traffic policeman hurt PTI.
Sonia Gandhi meets protesters; evictions
A crowd camped outside Congress president Sonia Gandhi's home at 10 Janpath, and she came out after midnight and spoke with them for about 20 minutes IANS. In an early morning operation police removed protesters who had spent the night at Raisina Hill and outside her house PTI via Business Standard.
Section 144 and the India Gate clashes
Police clamped prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC on New Delhi district, told protesters to go to Jantar Mantar or Ramlila Maidan, and shut eight Metro stations near India Gate PTI. Crowds came anyway. Police said they lobbed about 150 tear gas shells, and that about 100 protesters and some journalists were injured PTI via Deccan Herald. The police control room put the day's injured at more than 100, including 60 policemen AP.
Verma Committee set up
The government formed a three-member committee under former Chief Justice of India J.S. Verma to recommend changes to the criminal law on sexual assault PRS Legislative Research. The Delhi High Court said sexual assault trials would be heard day to day and accepted a plan for five fast-track courts IANS.
Prime Minister appeals for calm
In a televised address Manmohan Singh said "violence will serve no purpose" and promised justice AP. Nine Metro stations stayed closed; five reopened on the evening of 25 December after three days IANS via Free Press Journal.
Constable dies
Constable Subhash Tomar, 47, who was hurt at India Gate on 23 December, died in hospital Al Jazeera.
The victim dies; vigils
She died at Mount Elizabeth Hospital in Singapore, where she had been flown for treatment. Authorities allowed demonstrations only at Jantar Mantar and the Ramlila grounds and ordered 10 Metro stations closed CNN. In Mumbai about 1,500 people joined a silent march, police said Global Voices.
"Take Back the Night"
Groups in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata marked New Year's Eve with candlelight marches demanding the right of women to be out at night CS Monitor.
Both accounts of the clashes
Protesters' account
Protesters said they were peaceful students demanding justice. Women protesters at Raisina Hill alleged that police hit them with lathis PTI, and women detained at India Gate on 23 December said male police personnel manhandled them although women police were present PTI Claim · Protesters. A front-page Times of India editorial said "the police have been guilty of undue use of force" AP. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit said she did not approve of police action against the young IANS. The Verma Committee later said the use of batons on the protesters "has scarred Indian democracy" IANS via The Peninsula.
Police and government account
Special Commissioner of Police Dharmendra Kumar said "a peaceful protest by people has been taken over by hooligans" AP, and Delhi Police told the Home Ministry that "vested interests" were instigating violence PTI Government's position. Police said an additional DCP, an ACP and a constable were seriously injured. Minister of State V. Narayanasamy said "when they defy law and order, government has to use force", and Minister of State for Home R.P.N. Singh pointed to attempts to break barricades near the President's house IANS. IANS and AP both reported stones, bottles and bonfires from part of the crowd, while most remained peaceful Documented IANS.
The death of Constable Subhash Tomar
Police spokesman Rajan Bhagat said: "The protesters pelted stones at Tomar, he was unconscious for two days and today he died" Al Jazeera. Eight men, one of them an Aam Aadmi Party member, were first booked for attempt to murder and then for murder. AAP said police had arrested "innocent people" to justify the lathi charge and tear gas Governance Now Claim · AAP.
On 26 December the hospital and eyewitnesses contradicted the police version India TV. Two witnesses, Yogendra and Pauline, said Tomar collapsed while chasing protesters and was not beaten or trampled IANS via The Peninsula. In March 2013 Additional Solicitor General Sidharth Luthra told the Delhi High Court there was no evidence linking the eight to the death, though police said they had damaged public property Oneindia Documented. A separate plea sought a CBI probe; Justice G.P. Mittal reserved orders on both pleas on 20 March 2013.
The government's response
The Verma Committee, with Justice Leila Seth and former Solicitor General Gopal Subramanium, reported on 23 January 2013, 29 days after it was set up. Justice Verma said it received 80,000 suggestions from India and abroad. It recommended life imprisonment, not death, for rape, saying women's organisations had overwhelmingly opposed the death penalty, and did not recommend lowering the juvenile age from 18 to 16 IANS via The Peninsula. It also recommended removing the marital rape exception and stopping the "two-finger test" PRS.
President Pranab Mukherjee signed a criminal law ordinance on 3 February 2013 Bar and Bench. Parliament replaced it with the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013: the Lok Sabha passed it on 19 March and the Rajya Sabha on 21 March Amnesty International. It kept 18 as the age of consent, made stalking and voyeurism offences, set at least 20 years for gang rape, and allowed death for rape causing death or a persistent vegetative state and for repeat offenders IANS via The Peninsula. Amnesty welcomed parts of it but said it kept the marital rape exception, added "deeply regressive" death penalty provisions and ignored many Verma recommendations Amnesty International.
In the Budget on 28 February 2013, Finance Minister P. Chidambaram announced a Rs 1,000 crore Nirbhaya Fund for women's safety Global Voices. A parliamentary committee later said most of the money had lain "idle" for years Governance Now.
The trial and the verdicts
A fast-track court was inaugurated in January 2013 by Chief Justice Altamas Kabir BOOM. The main accused, Ram Singh, was found dead in his Tihar Jail cell in March 2013; jail officials said it was suicide, while his family and lawyer suggested murder BOOM. Police filed the charge-sheet in 17 days IANS.
On 31 August 2013 the Juvenile Justice Board sent the minor to a reform home for three years, the maximum allowed. On 13 September Additional Sessions Judge Yogesh Khanna sentenced Mukesh Singh, Pawan Gupta, Vinay Sharma and Akshay Thakur to death, calling it one of the "rarest of rare cases" IANS. The Delhi High Court upheld the sentences on 13 March 2014 LiveLaw.
On 5 May 2017 a three-judge Supreme Court bench upheld the death sentences in a 429-page verdict. Defence lawyer M.L. Sharma called it "a result of a media trial" BenarNews. A bench led by Chief Justice Dipak Misra dismissed review petitions on 9 July 2018, finding "no error apparent upon the face of the record" LiveLaw.
Death warrants for 22 January, 1 February and 3 March 2020 were put off as mercy and curative petitions were filed. The four were hanged in Tihar Jail at 5.30 am on 20 March 2020, hours after the courts rejected last pleas The News Minute.
The juvenile justice debate
The juvenile convict, 17 at the time of the crime, was released on 20 December 2015. Protesters, including the victim's parents, were detained at India Gate CS Monitor. The Delhi Commission for Women asked the Supreme Court to keep him in custody, but the court said "everything had happened in accordance with the law" and "we need legislative sanctions" Reuters via The Peninsula.
On 22 December 2015 the Rajya Sabha passed the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Bill, 2015, under which 16 to 18-year-olds accused of heinous crimes can be tried as adults SCC Online. The Quint linked its quick passage directly to the release The Quint.
Outcome
- Convictions: four adults sentenced to death in 2013 and hanged on 20 March 2020; one accused died in jail in March 2013; the juvenile served three years in a reform home.
- Law changes: Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013; Juvenile Justice Act, 2015.
- Inquiry: the Justice Verma Committee report of 23 January 2013.
- Funding: the Nirbhaya Fund, from Rs 1,000 crore in 2013.
- Constable's death: murder charges against eight men; police later told the High Court there was no evidence against them.
Where things stand now
A Rajya Sabha reply in July 2026 showed Rs 7,990.85 crore set aside for the Nirbhaya Fund since 2013-14, with Rs 1,287.83 crore, about 16 percent, unused. The 2025-26 allocation of Rs 278 crore was the lowest in the fund's history ThePrint. On 10 October 2026 the Supreme Court held a consultation on ten years of the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, where Justice B.V. Nagarathna cited 55 percent pendency before Juvenile Justice Boards SCC Online.
Questions people ask
What happened at Raisina Hill in December 2012?
On 21 and 22 December 2012 thousands of protesters marched from India Gate to Raisina Hill, home to Rashtrapati Bhavan and key ministries, demanding justice for the gang rape victim. Police used canes, tear gas and water cannon, and The Tribune counted at least 35 injured on 22 December.
Why were Delhi Metro stations closed?
Delhi Metro shut nine central stations, including Rajiv Chowk, at Delhi Police's request to stop protesters reaching India Gate. They stayed closed for about three days, and Metro lost more than 200,000 passengers over those days, IANS reported.
How did Constable Subhash Tomar die?
Police said protesters beat him at India Gate on 23 December 2012 and he died on 25 December. Two witnesses said he collapsed while chasing protesters, and in March 2013 police told the Delhi High Court there was no evidence linking the eight accused to his death.
What did the Justice Verma Committee recommend?
It recommended a broader definition of rape, criminalising marital rape, ending the two-finger test, separate offences for stalking, voyeurism and acid attacks, and life imprisonment rather than death for rape. Parliament adopted some recommendations in the 2013 Act but added the death penalty for some cases.
What happened to the juvenile convict?
He was sentenced to three years in a reform home, the maximum under the law then, and released in December 2015. The Supreme Court said it could not hold him longer, and Parliament passed the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 days later.
Sources
- PTI via The Goan: Teargas, water cannons used against protesters, 22 Dec 2012
- IANS via The Peninsula: Raisina Hill turns battle zone, 23 Dec 2012
- The Tribune: Pitched battles at Raisina Hill; Metro stations near India Gate shut, 23 Dec 2012
- PTI via Business Standard: Anti-rape protesters defy police, prohibitory orders in Delhi, 23 Dec 2012
- PTI via Deccan Herald: Violence at India Gate, hooligans hijack protests, 23 Dec 2012
- AP via Christian Science Monitor: Thousands protesting gang rape clash with Indian police, 23 Dec 2012
- IANS via Gulf News: Fury over rape turns India Gate into battle zone, 23 Dec 2012
- AP via Gulf News: Indian PM urges calm as anger rages over gang-rape, 24 Dec 2012
- IANS via Free Press Journal: Five of nine closed Metro stations opened, Dec 2012
- Al Jazeera: India policeman dies from protest injuries, 25 Dec 2012
- Governance Now: Murder charges against 8 after cop's death, 25 Dec 2012
- India TV: Questions over cause of constable Tomar's death, 26 Dec 2012
- CNN: Gang rape victim dies in Singapore hospital, 29 Dec 2012
- Global Voices: Delhi gang rape victim's death prompts vigils across India, 30 Dec 2012
- Christian Science Monitor: Protesters march for women's safety on New Year's Eve, 31 Dec 2012
- IANS via The Peninsula: No death penalty for rapists, says Verma panel, 23 Jan 2013
- PRS Legislative Research: Justice Verma Committee report summary, 2013
- Bar and Bench: President accords assent to Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2013, 4 Feb 2013
- Global Voices: India aims to woo women with new budget, 6 Mar 2013
- Oneindia: Constable Tomar's death: Delhi Police clear 8 AAP activists, 12 Mar 2013
- IANS via The Peninsula: Lok Sabha approves anti-rape bill, 20 Mar 2013
- Amnesty International: New sexual violence law has both positive and regressive provisions, Mar 2013
- IANS via The Peninsula: HC verdict in Delhi cop's death today, 8 May 2013
- IANS via The Peninsula: Delhi gang rapists given death penalty, 14 Sept 2013
- Christian Science Monitor: Hundreds in India protest release of gang-rape convict, 20 Dec 2015
- Reuters via The Peninsula: Supreme Court says no power to extend sentence of Delhi gang rape convict, 21 Dec 2015
- SCC Online: Rajya Sabha passes the Juvenile Justice Bill, 2015, 23 Dec 2015
- The Quint: RS passed Juvenile Justice Bill, 2015: here's all you need to know, 23 Dec 2015
- BenarNews: India's top court upholds death penalties for Delhi gang-rape convicts, 5 May 2017
- Governance Now: All you need to know about the Nirbhaya Fund, 2017
- LiveLaw: SC dismisses review petitions of the convicts in the 2012 Delhi gang rape case, 9 July 2018
- BOOM: Explainer on the executions at Tihar Jail and the case timeline, 20 Mar 2020
- The News Minute: Seven years after the Delhi gang rape, four convicts hanged, 20 Mar 2020
- ThePrint: Several Nirbhaya Fund projects yet to spend a rupee, Rs 1,288 crore unutilised, 30 July 2026
- SCC Online: Supreme Court marks 10 years of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, 12 Oct 2026