Rohtak: A mentally challenged woman's savage rape and murder in a town 80 km from Delhi has spurred chilling comparisons to the 2012 gang-rape in the capital.
The 28-year-old woman's naked body was found in a field near the highway in Haryana's Rohtak, half eaten by animals and with key organs missing. The police said objects had been inserted into her; sticks, stones and condoms were stuffed into her private parts.
"I have never seen such a horrific case in 30 years. The injuries suggest she was hit on the head with a heavy object, became part unconscious and was then gang-raped. Stones were inserted in her before she was dumped," said SK Dattarwal, who headed the post mortem examination.
The mutilated body was found three days after the woman was reported missing by her sister.
"The police did not take my complaint seriously. They said you keep looking for her...you will find her or maybe she will return. If they had acted promptly, she would have been alive," the sister said, adding, "We want the killers to be hanged."
As they confronted public fury, the police prayed for luck in hunting down the attackers.
"We are not lacking in manpower or vehicles. We are only short of luck. If luck is with us, then we will solve the case," said Chandigarh police chief Yashpal Singal, who is in Rohtak to oversee the investigations.
The woman had come from Nepal a few months ago and was staying with her sister while being treated at a hospital.
Protesters blocked the national highway on Sunday as details emerged of the brutal attack and the apparent reluctance of the police to act at first.
"We have asked for a report and any errant officer will be charged," said Mr Singal.
The police in Rohtak have announced a five lakh rupee reward for information on the attackers.
They deny that they are struggling with the case.
"There are some good clues but I don't want to give any running commentary because that will go against the case," said Mohd Akil Ahmed, a senior Rohtak police officer.
In 2012, the fatal gang-rape of a student on a moving bus in New Delhi led to a massive public outcry and tougher laws to deter rapists.