Public protests took place in New Delhi on 21 December 2012 at India Gate and Raisina Hill, the latter being the location of both the Parliament of India and Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India. Thousands of protesters clashed with police and battled Rapid Action Force units. Demonstrators were lathi charged, shot with water cannon and tear gas shells, and arrested.
Similar protests occurred throughout the country. More than 600 women belonging to various organisations demonstrated in Bangalore. Thousands of people silently marched in Kolkata.[103] Protests occurred online as well on the social networking sites Facebook and WhatsApp, with users replacing their profile images with a black dot symbol. Tens of thousands signed an online petition protesting the incident.
Yoga guru Baba Ramdev and former Army chief General Vijay Kumar Singh were among the demonstrators who clashed with Delhi Police at Jantar Mantar. On 24 December, activist Rajesh Gangwar started a hunger strike saying, ""If my death shakes the system and gets them (accused in the gang-rape case) hanged, I am ready to die".
Seven metro rail stations in New Delhi were closed on 22 December 2012 to discourage protesters from gathering at Raisina Hill. On 24 December 2012, police blocked roads leading to India Gate and Raisina Hill to prevent possible mass protests, and closed nine metro stations, affecting thousands of transit patrons. News reporters were not allowed to reach India Gate and Raisina Hill. In addition to CrPC section 144, which disallows assembly of groups larger than five, curfew was imposed near the presidential residence. The Hindustan Times accused police of using excessive force against the protestors, reporting that 375 tear gas canisters were used at India Gate and elsewhere in Delhi to disperse the crowds. An article in First Post criticized the Indian government as well, saying that they failed to act positively or give credible assurances to the protesters and instead used police force, lathi-charging, pushing the media out of the scene, and shutting down metro rail stations. Police stated that peaceful protests had been "hijacked" by hooligans and political activists.
During one protest, a police constable named Subhash Tomar collapsed and later died in hospital. Two witnesses claimed that Tomar collapsed without being hit by any protesters, while a third disputed this. Hospital doctors and the post-mortem gave contradictory reports: he died due to cardiac arrest, but it is not known if the heart attack was caused by blunt-force injuries that he suffered to his chest and neck. Some experts state that his chest injuries may have been a side effect of the administration of CPR. The Delhi Police arrested 8 young men and charged them with Tomar's murder and rioting at India Gate. Later in March 2013, the police admitted in the High Court they had no evidence against the eight and gave them a clean chit. Meanwhile the youths have intended they might move the court against the commissioner of police, seeking criminal proceedings against him for his 'irresponsible' move to book them on murder charges in the first place.
Similar protests occurred throughout the country. More than 600 women belonging to various organisations demonstrated in Bangalore. Thousands of people silently marched in Kolkata.[103] Protests occurred online as well on the social networking sites Facebook and WhatsApp, with users replacing their profile images with a black dot symbol. Tens of thousands signed an online petition protesting the incident.
Yoga guru Baba Ramdev and former Army chief General Vijay Kumar Singh were among the demonstrators who clashed with Delhi Police at Jantar Mantar. On 24 December, activist Rajesh Gangwar started a hunger strike saying, ""If my death shakes the system and gets them (accused in the gang-rape case) hanged, I am ready to die".
During one protest, a police constable named Subhash Tomar collapsed and later died in hospital. Two witnesses claimed that Tomar collapsed without being hit by any protesters, while a third disputed this. Hospital doctors and the post-mortem gave contradictory reports: he died due to cardiac arrest, but it is not known if the heart attack was caused by blunt-force injuries that he suffered to his chest and neck. Some experts state that his chest injuries may have been a side effect of the administration of CPR. The Delhi Police arrested 8 young men and charged them with Tomar's murder and rioting at India Gate. Later in March 2013, the police admitted in the High Court they had no evidence against the eight and gave them a clean chit. Meanwhile the youths have intended they might move the court against the commissioner of police, seeking criminal proceedings against him for his 'irresponsible' move to book them on murder charges in the first place.
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