New Delhi, December 25
Prayers were offered for the gangrape victim at Christmas that was celebrated with fervour and a spirit of togetherness in the city today. As bells tolled, worshippers thronged churches and cathedrals decorated with twinkling lights for the midnight service to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ.

Thousands of people flocked to churches to pray for peace and amity. Many also prayed for the 23-year-old victim who was raped on December 16.

“Many of us offered prayers for the young woman today who is still in a critical condition in a city hospital,” said Mary De’Souza who had come to Sacred Heart church.

At the ornately decorated Sacred Heart Cathedral near Connaught Place, in the heart of the Capital, people came in hordes—bundled in woollens and wearing bright smiles—to pray and celebrate the festival.

“People are not here just to celebrate, many of them are here to pray for the girl who is fighting with all her spirit in the hospital,” said Father J. Rebello of Sacred Heart Cathedral.

After the prayers in the morning, elaborate lunches were prepared at homes, bringing together friends and family.

“Christianity as a faith draws the young in India because of its values of service and non-dogmatic practices,” said 30-year-old Rosemary Thomas.

A six hour film on Jesus called ‘Christiyan’ made by the Delhi diocese was screened at the Sacred Heart church.

“On this Christmas day, we go to church to attend the mass, and this mass is very special to us. We pray and share our joys on this sacred day,” said Merin Cherian.

“This is a holy day for us. We make beautiful cribs inside the church and wear new clothes, and the cakes are so delicious. It is the time for us to celebrate,” she added.

Sparkling Christmas trees and gift items adorned the marketplaces which wore a festive look as community feasts, exchange of greetings and colourful processions marked the occasion.

Traditional Christmas carols rendered the air festive with gospel bands enthralling the merrymakers with songs like ‘Jingle Bells’, ‘Oh Holy Night’ and ‘Santa Claus Is Coming to Town’.

Long queues were seen in front of prominent bakeries in the city, selling designer cakes.

Stores stocking Xmas merchandise were inundated with shoppers as sumptuous feast formed an important part of the celebrations in many homes.

New Delhi, December 25
People’s Union Civil Liberties (PUCL) today strongly condemned the brutal assault of a 23-year-old girl on a moving bus on December 16. It also criticized the police crackdown on the people protesting against the incident.

“The response of the Union Home Minister, Chief Minister of Delhi and the Prime Minister, has been belated and also insensitive when the minister used the Maoists as an alibi for not meeting and addressing the agitators,” said Dr V Suresh, national general secretary of PUCL.

The members of the organization said that the political executive has failed to understand that the agitation is not against this particular incident alone. “The agitation is symbolic of the loss of trust and confidence of people of this country in the criminal justice institutions and the people managing them,” he said.

According to members, the agitation has also to be seen in the context of increasing incidents of aggravated sexual assaults on young girls, some as young as five to eight years old across the country. “The situation of rape and sexual violence is particularly severe in rural areas where on a daily basis, there are reports of women from Dalit, minority and economically vulnerable sections suffering violence and sexual assault at the hands of men, on the streets and , workplaces,” said Prof Prabhakar Sinha, national president of PUCL.

However, the members opposed the demand to introduce death sentence as a penalty for rape.

New Delhi, December 25
As Central Delhi continued to be guarded with excessive policing and traffic restrictions for the second day today, protestors continued their demonstration at Jantar Mantar today in solidarity with the 23-year-old gangrape victim battling for life at Safdarjung Hospital.

The overall mood today remained subdued as the news of the death of Subhash Tomar, the police constable who had been seriously injured in the police crackdown on India Gate on December 22, reached the protestors.

Many wore black bands in solidarity and refrained from sloganeering.

Students, housewives, office-goers and even the elderly were seen engrossed in long discussions, trying to understand the problems surrounding women’s safety in the Capital.

In another constructive endeavour, a few people came forward to help organize a public meeting on the concerns surrounding women’s safety and later submit its suggestions to the Justice Verma Commission.

This public meeting, slated for later this week, would aim at making a set of recommendations to be sent to the commission set up two days ago.

The commission has invited suggestions from across sectors to help in preparing a report on helpful measures to promote women’s safety and reduce instances of crime against women.

A protestor, Yogita Choudhary, was today distributing photocopies of an appeal for a public meeting with her phone number on it.

“Some politicians have been mocking the protests at Jantar Mantar commenting that the youth is divided. Hence, this public meeting is an attempt to channel these protests towards the best possible direction. The commission is seeking responses from society, and we want to send our suggestions,” she said.

“The venue of the meeting will be decided in a couple of days depending on the response to the appeal. I have received over 800 confirmations in one hour. We would be able to make a significant contribution. Our suggestions can actually help make a difference,” she added.

Later in the evening, attempts to keep away from the political student outfits led to a clash between the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (BJP’s student wing) workers and a few other protestors. However, tension simmered down and both the groups soon continued their protest at some distance from each other.

New Delhi, December 25
It was a chilly Christmas for Delhiites with dense fog enveloping the city in the morning. As many as 50 trains were affected by the foggy conditions.

The city and adjoining areas witnessed dense fog this morning and the maximum temperature dropped to 16.7 degree Celsius, five degrees below normal, said a MeT department official. The minimum was recorded at seven degree Celsius, which is normal for this time of the year.

As humidity level oscillating between 100 per cent and 61 per cent, it created a perfect condition for dense fog which started to engulf the city last evening, causing inconvenience to commuters.

Yesterday, the maximum temperature was recorded at 19.1 degree Celsius, three degrees below normal and the minimum was 7.7 degree Celsius which was normal. MeT department has predicted a clear sky for tomorrow, but fog in the morning.

Train services remained affected due to poor visibility with the Railways rescheduling the departure timing of about 50 trains leaving the city. The rescheduling came as close to 100 trains arrived here several hours behind schedule, some late by even a day, said an official.

The Railways officials said even as the foggy condition subsides, it will take at least two to three days for normalcy to return.

The rescheduled trains included the Rajdhani and Duronto trains mostly bound for the eastern states, said a Northern Railway spokesperson.

The long delays and the change of departure timing caused inconvenience to passengers, especially to those who had to catch the connecting trains from the city to carry on with their journey.

Apart from the Rajdhanis, the late incoming trains today included the Shiv Ganga express from Varanasi, the Magadh express from Islampur, the Amritsar Shatabdi express, the Mahabodhi express from Gaya, the Bihar Sampark Kranti express from Darbhanga, the Farakka express from Malda Town and a special train from Patna which was running late by more than a day.