Live : Kejriwal leads silent protest at Jantar Mantar against Delhi gangrape

New Delhi, Dec 29: A large number of people have assembled at Jantar Mantar to mourn in silence the death of the 23-year-old gang-rape victim ‘Damini'. The protest is being led by Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal and his supporters. AAP leaders have tied their mouth with black clothes. 2:50 pm: Crowd swells up signifcantly to more than a thousand. Kejriwal, Sisodia sit quietly as other speakers give speeches2:28 pm: Protesters ask Sheila Dikshit not to politicise their cause2: 27 pm: Sheila Dikshit, surrounded by policemen lighted a candle on the street, joined her hands in prayer, before the crowd of protesters forced her to leave.2:26 pm: Sheila Dikshit not allowed to join protesters at Jantar Mantar 11:26am: AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia reach Jantar Mantar for protest10 am: People start gathering at Jantar Mantar at around 10 AM Bangalore: Emotions ran high in parts of Karnataka following the death of the Delhi gangrape victim with people, particularly women, demanding stringent punishment including death penalty, for the perpetrators of the crime.As the news of the tragic end of the 23-year-old para-medical student, who was undergoing treatment in a hospital in Singapore, spread, girls of various colleges took out a protest march and mourned the death. In Bangalore, students of women colleges were in tears while expressing their ire over the rape. BJP's women wing also staged protests demanding immediate punishment to the rapists.BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitaraman urged the Centre to enact strict laws to ensure safety of women and also the laws should act as deterrent to rapists.Some mourners, who participated in a candle light march in Mandya, Haveri, Mysore, Bellary and other places, said the culprits should be punished in public, while others advocated capital punishment.Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, who is touring in Bagalkot, expressed grief over the girl's death. Karnataka Janata Party President B S Yeddyurappa also mourned the death of the girl and said a situation in which women can move around fearlessly, should be created in the country. Steps should be taken to ensure that the Delhi incident did not recur, he said.Karnataka Home Minister R Ashok said in Hospet that the state government was contemplating slapping provisions of the stringent Anti-Goonda act against rapists. Gangrape incidents have been reported in Bangalore City few months ago and in Hassan recently. In both the incidents, the culprits have been arrested. Ballia (UP): A pall of gloom descended on Delhi gang-rape victim's native Mandwara Kalan village in the district today as soon as the news of her death poured in. Village head Shiv Mandir Singh said that a condolence meeting was held to pray for the peace of the departed soul. He also said there was resentment among the locals over the incident with people demanding stern punishment for the accused.Villagers want such a stern punishment should be given to the accused that it would instill fear in the hearts of such culprits, Singh said.A relative of the victim said her family would continue to strive till the time capital punishment was given to the accused.Since the news of the incident came, locals had been praying day and night in the local temple for the early recovery of the girlNew Delhi: A series of peaceful marches and protests were today held in the capital, including one at Jantar Mantar, to mourn the death of the 23-year-old gangrape victim even as India Gate and Raisina Hill were kept out of bounds for people.Policemen were deployed in strength in and around India Gate and Raisina Hill as well as other parts of the capital to ensure that the protests remain peaceful besides shutting down of Delhi Metro stations near the war memorial. Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit requested Home Minister SushilKumar Shinde to lift restrictions on holding peaceful demonstration in memory of the victim in and around India Gate.In one of the protests, JNU students marched from their campus to Munirka bus stop from where the girl boarded the bus in which she was gangraped and brutally assaulted on December 16 allegedly by six men.The students announced that they will hold a night vigil at the same spot on New Year Eve demanding strong laws to punish sexual offenders.Activists of Left parties staged a peace march from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar led by CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Brinda Karat.She said there was a need for fixing accountability.“Unless we do this, such incidents will repeat,” she said. Asked about sexist comments by politicians, she said it shows the mindset of people and that “action should be taken against them in Parliament”.At Jantar Mantar, a number of people sat on a silent protest. However, later there were sloganeering and demands for immediate punishment of the culprits. The mourners also protested against the security lock down of India Gate and Raisina Hill where violent demonstrations were witnessed last weekend over the rape. People started gathering at Jantar Mantar here at around 10 AM and sat in silence.Aam Aadmi Party leaders Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Kumar Vishwas also joined the protest along with some of their supporters with their mouth tied with black cloth. Kejriwal tweeted, “her death is a matter of shame and sorrow for all of us. Let's resolve that we will not let her death go in vain.“Aren't we all responsible for her death? Can we all now do something so that half of humanity starts feeling safe amongst us?” he said.“The government is not even allowing mourning of the death. This is insensitivity. There is complete lock down. You have the metro stations shut. You have a road completely blocked. This is undemocratic,” a protester Sunil said. Sisodia said the government was muzzling the voice of people by shutting Metro and closing down India Gate. In a statement, AAP said the girl, who became the symbol of women's insecurity and their courage, is no more. “This is a moment of national grief. This is also a moment of national shame. We, as a nation, have failed to provide conditions in which women can lead a normal life without being subjected to indignities. We, as a society, have failed to evolve a culture of respect and equality for women. “This event and the subsequent developments have no doubt generated widespread outrage and justified anger. But today we must convert this into a positive resolve. Let us all resolve that we shall convert this moment into a movement to end all forms of violence against women. Let No Violence Against Women be our national new year's resolution,” it said. In tweets, activist Kiran Bedi said, “today is a day of reflection and personal audit on the way we as parents and teachers are grooming boys in this country. “Today is day of mourning on lives we have lost because of failure of our criminal justice system and resolve to not fail it in future. Today is a day to also reflect the way we project our women in media,” she said.