Police say 15-year-old raped, set on fire outside New Delhi

The attack is just one of several recently reported cases of rapes of women or children in India — underlining the persistence of such violence despite a public outcry three years ago that led to stronger laws against sexual assault. India’s women and children are considered particularly vulnerable to sexual violence and harassment because of widespread social taboos against speaking about sexual assault. Experts say that has started to change since the fatal gang rape of a 23-year-old woman on a New Delhi bus in 2012 triggered national anger and demands that more be done for women’s safety. The government rushed through legislation to double prison terms for rape, and to criminalize voyeurism, stalking and the trafficking of women. On Monday, police in the financial capital of Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, said they were investigating whether a 4-year-old girl whose body was dumped in the bushes on the city’s outskirts had been raped before being killed, according to the Press Trust of India news agency.