Tharoor for law named after rape victim

Union Minister and writer Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday suggested that any future law to curb growing rapes in the country could be named after the Delhi gangrape victim who died in a Singapore hospital on Saturday after a 13-day-long fight since the horrific attack on her, but not without galvanising a nation fed up with crimes against women.

"Unless her parents object, she should be honoured and the revised anti-rape law named after her. She was a human being with a name, [she was] not just a symbol," tweeted Tharoor, who is now the Minister of State for Human Resource Development.

Tharoor said he was wondering why at all the name of the girl was kept a secret.

"Wondering what interest is served by continuing anonymity of the Delhi gangrape victim. Why not name and honour her as a real person with [her] own identity?" asked Tharoor.

The suggestions of Tharoor, however, was not backed by Congress yet while Opposition parties rejected the idea.

Tharoor posted his views on his Twitter handle at the risk of a backlash while his previous tweets when he was a junior external affairs minister had landed him in trouble.

India woke up on Saturday to the tragic news of the death of the paramedical student in a Singapore hospital, finally losing a 13-day-long battle for life after being raped and brutalised by six men on a moving bus in Delhi on Dec 16.

Her death left the nation in a state of mourning and churning as the collective anger of people found new expressions in clamour for change and justice.

The body of the victim was cremated under secrecy within hours of its landing in the national capital under the supervision of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi

Media gave her many names, most popular among that being Damini. Some also called her Amanat or Nirbhaya.