Indian official resigns amid outrage over selfie with rape victim

A government official in northwestern India has resigned after she and her colleague were pictured taking a smiling selfie with a rape victim, Indian media reported.

According to the Times of India, Somya Gurjar resigned from the Rajasthan Women's Commission on Thursday after being summoned by the National Commission for Women, a department that advises the Indian government on women's issues.

It reported that the pictures were taken when several commission members met the 30-year-old victim at a police station on Wednesday.

The photos first emerged on the phone messaging service WhatsApp and then circulated quickly on social media and sparked a wave of outrage among the public, especially because India prohibits identifying victims of rape.

It was not clear yet who took those pictures and put them on the Internet.

In the images, Gurgar was seen holding a tablet, with commission chairperson Suman Sharma lifting the victim's right arm and holding her hand. The face of the victim was obscured.

The victim said her husband and two of his nephews gang-raped her and tattooed profanities on her forehand and hand for not paying an agreed dowry of 51,000 Rupees (Around 750 U.S. dollars).

But Gurjar said she had no intention to offend the victim. She was curious about the camera, Gurjar said, "I try to take a selfie to relax and normalize her. I was trying to be humane with her."

Since 2012, several rape cases in India received widespread media attention and triggered protests, which led the government to reform its penal code for crimes of rape and sexual assault. Endi