Sonia Gandhi speaks out on Delhi rape

Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Friday spoke out for the first time on the gangrape and brutalization of the Delhi girl fighting for her life, wishing her speedy recovery and quick punishment of the perpetrators of the crime.

"Our thoughts are with the young woman who is fighting for her life," Sonia Gandhi was quoted saying by NDTV.

She said "our only wish today is that she recovers and that she comes back to us, and that no time is lost in bringing the perpetrators of such a barbarous act to justice."

Union Home Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said the girl remained critical in the Singapore hospital but the government would do everything possible to revive her, whether that means taking her to London or USA for treatment.

The 23-year-old medical student who was raped and brutalised by six men on a moving bus in Delhi on Dec 16, currently battling for her life in a Singapore hospital, is in "extremely critical" condition, last report said.

Large parts of the victim´s intestines were removed as a result of the injuries she suffered from the attack. She has significant brain injury also.

The victim has already undergone three surgeries and a cardiac arrest in Delhi before she was shifted to the Singapore hospital for best available treatment.

As the condition of the woman remained worrying, authorities have been under tremendous pressure from all fronts as the incident sparked protests nationwide.

A police constable also purportedly lost his life this week following violence that broke out at one such protest at India Gate in New Delhi.

The 23-year-old woman was raped and brutalized with an iron rod on a moving bus and then thrown off the vehicle along with his male companion on Dec 16 when she was returning home after a film show.