Closed trial for India bus rape sparks debate The brutal gang-rape and murder of a student in New Delhi sparked outrage across India and condemnation from around the world. But despite the global interest, the trial that began this week has been closed to the public and media. The decision to close the court has generated fierce debate in India over whether media scrutiny would hinder or guarantee a fair trial for the five defendants in an emotive case that has already prompted the Congress-led government to issue an emergency ordinance that would permit some convicted rapists to be sentenced to death. Indian legal and media circles have been torn between a belief in the fundamental principal of transparent, open trials and concerns the gang-rape case would be a salacious spectacle. "I can completely understand that there is too much of a circus to be able to have a balanced view if everything is being covered by the media moment to moment," says Karuna Nundy, a Supreme Court advocate. At the same time, it's true that scrutiny does hold one up to higher standards. During pre-trial proceedings, police argued that the court should be closed to the public, and media, to ensure the safety of the defendants and protect the identity of the now deceased victim, though her family has given numerous media interviews, and her life has been widely reported on. A judge agreed, and expelled the media, after disruptions by lawyers attacking their colleagues who offered to represent the accused. However, Meenakshi Lehki, a lawyer and spokeswoman for the opposition Bharatiya Janata party, said an open court need not mean a free-for-all, if access is carefully controlled and restricted to accredited journalists, as during the trial of now convicted and executed Mumbai terrorist Ajmal Kasab. "Open trial offers better protection not just to the victim but also the accused," said Ms Lekhi, who has filed a legal petition, due to be heard next week, challenging the closure of the courtroom. Who knows whether the right people have been caught? Why should it be under cover?" she said. What is on trial is not just the accused but the criminal justice system. Since 1983, Indian law has allowed rape trials to be held in closed courtrooms, a reform feminists fought for to protect rape victims from the trauma of describing what happened to them in front of a roomful of strangers. While basic details of the bus gang-rape are widely known, some still believe a closed trial is necessary for dignity of the young woman, who died after being airlifted to a Singapore hospital nearly two weeks after the attack. "It is proper that the victim and the victim's family's honour is protected," Bharat Bhusan, a senior journalist and former newspaper editor, told a local Indian TV channel. It is right that the gory details of rape cases are not discussed in public. However, Vrinda Grover, a prominent human rights lawyer, says closing the trial for a victim who has already died is a form of "liberal paternalism" that reinforces outdated ideas of rape as a shame for the women victims, rather than a violent attack like any other. "If we want to get rid of the sigma attached to rape and break out of this "honour, shame and chastity" mode we've got trapped in, we will have to speak about these things," she said. By creating greater silence around this, you are not advancing the cause of women's rights.