‘I was raped and beaten... only justice can heal me’

NEW DELHI: Coming to India was a childhood dream for her. But eight months after her first visit, a 25-year-old woman from Pennsylvania in the United States is back in New Delhi – this time to fight for justice.

In an interview with Hindustan Times, the woman, described in the media in recent weeks as “the American tourist”, has alleged that she was raped, drugged and physically assaulted in a five-star hotel in the Capital on two consecutive days this April.

She also said she feared the police weren’t doing enough to catch her alleged rapists.

“I came to India on a tour. In the hotel… I was sexually assaulted by three members of the tour group and two members of the hotel staff. I was drugged during that time. I was physically assaulted and sexually assaulted,” she said.

“I am still afraid… afraid of being alone in India.”

The woman, who flew in on December 19 to join the investigation, had filed a complaint on email to Delhi Police through a US-based NGO on October 5.

She blamed two hotel employees, and a conductor, a driver and a guide from the tour agency for the crime.

A case of gang rape was registered on December 3.

Police are questioning three suspects, but no arrests have been made so far.

“They may be sincere but I don’t think the police are doing enough… I am definitely worried that I may not get justice. I am not naive to the situation. I have come this far… finding justice is a sense of healing for me.”

Over the past week, her statement has been recorded in front of a magistrate and she had undergone a medical examination.

The woman said her trauma has been unbearable.

“There is a lot of emotional trauma I suffer, and probably I will for the rest of my life,” she said. “I (want to) try to do everything I can in this situation and keep other women from being victims of these people.”

They may be sincere but I don’t think the police are doing enough… I am not naive to the situation. I have come this far… finding justice is a sense of healing for me. THE RAPE SURVIVOR