New Delhi, Aug 27 (IANS) The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought a report from the Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) and Ghaziabad District Magistrate (DM) within two weeks regarding the death of a speech and hearing impaired gang rape victim.

The victim was found dead at her residence in Ghaziabad district on August 21, exactly three days after she was allegedly gang-raped by two men in the Loni area.

The apex human rights body took suo motu cognisance of the incident, noting that the victim had been undergoing treatment at the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS) in Delhi.

In a press statement, the NHRC said that the contents of the press report, if true, raise a serious violation of human rights.

It issued notices to the Uttar Pradesh DGP and Ghaziabad DM calling for a detailed report on the matter within two weeks.

According to a media report published on August 22, the two alleged perpetrators, who had abducted the woman while she was walking alone on an isolated stretch and sexually assaulted her, have been arrested.

Established under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the NHRC, an autonomous statutory body, is an embodiment of India’s concern for the promotion and protection of human rights. Its primary role is to protect and promote human rights, defined as the rights relating to life, liberty, equality, and dignity of individuals guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants and enforceable by courts in India.

The apex human rights body has the power to take suo motu (on its own motion) action based on media reports, public knowledge or other sources, without receiving a formal complaint of human rights violations.

–IANS

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