The victim of a gang-rape in New Delhi fought for her life at a Singapore hospital Friday as officials in the Indian state of Punjab fired and suspended police officers accused of ignoring the rape of another woman, who then committed suicide. 
 
 Indian authorities have been accused of belittling rape victims and refusing to file cases against their attackers, further deterring victims _ already under societal pressure to keep the assaults quiet _ from reporting the crimes. 
 
 However, the gang-rape of the 23-year-old student on a moving bus in the capital two weeks ago has brought new focus on police and community attitudes toward woman in India. Demonstrators in New Delhi have demanded stronger protections for women and stronger punishment for rapists. 
 
 Authorities in Punjab took action Thursday when an 18-year-old woman killed herself by drinking poison a month after she told police she was gang-raped. 
 
 State authorities suspended one police officer and fired two others on accusations they delayed investigating and taking action in the case. The three accused in the rape were only arrested Thursday night, a month after the crime was reported. 
 
 "This is a very sensitive crime, I have taken it very seriously," said Paramjit Singh Gill, a top police officer in the city of Patiala. 
 
 The Press Trust of India reported that the woman was raped Nov. 13 and reported the attack to police Nov. 27. But police harassed the girl, asked her embarrassing questions and took no action against the accused, PTI reported, citing police sources. 
 
 Authorities in the eastern state of Chhattisgarh also suspended a police officer on accusations he refused to register a rape complaint from a woman who said she had been attacked by a driver. 
 
 Meanwhile, doctors in Singapore said the New Delhi gang-rape victim remained in extremely critical condition, had suffered a heart attack, a lung and abdominal infection and `'significant" brain injury. 
 
 `'The patient is currently struggling against the odds, and fighting for her life," said Mount Elizabeth Hospital chief executive Dr. Kelvin Loh. 
 
 Police have arrested six people in connection with the attack, which left the victim with severe internal injuries. 
 
 `'We wish she recovers and comes back to us and that no time is lost in bringing the perpetrators of such a barbaric act to justice," said Sonia Gandhi, head of the ruling Congress Party. 
 
 Other politicians have come under fire for comments insulting the protesters and diminishing the crime. 
 
 On Friday, Abhijit Mukherjee, a national lawmaker and the son of India's president, apologized for calling the protesters `'highly dented and painted" women, who go from discos to demonstrations. 
 
 `'I tender my unconditional apology to all the people whose sentiments got hurt," he told NDTV news. 
 
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 Follow Ravi Nessman at twitter at http://www.twitter.com/ravinessman ||||| Image caption The victim is being treated at a specialised facility in Singapore 
 
 A female student who was gang-raped on a bus in India's capital Delhi has arrived in Singapore for further treatment, officials say. 
 
 The 23-year-old victim - who remains on life support - is being treated at a specialised facility and may require an organ transplant. 
 
 The attack earlier this month triggered violent public protests, which left one police officer dead. 
 
 An inquiry into possible lapses by the authorities is now under way. 
 
 The investigation is being led by retired judge Usha Mehra. 
 
 Six men have been arrested and two police officers have been suspended following the 16 December attack. 
 
 An air ambulance carrying the woman landed at Singapore Changi International Airport early on Thursday, the Indian High Commission in Singapore told news agencies. 
 
 The victim - who has already had three operations in Delhi - was then taken to the city's Mount Elizabeth hospital. 
 
 The hospital said in a statement quoted by the Associated Press that she was admitted to the intensive care unit "in an extremely critical condition". 
 
 "She is being examined and the hospital is working with the Indian High Commission," the statement said. 
 
 'Prolonged treatment' 
 
 Senior Delhi doctor BD Athani told the Press Trust of India that the hospital had "a state-of-art multi-organ transplant facility" to treat the victim's severe intestinal injuries. 
 
 The woman's family have accompanied her to Singapore because the treatment might take a long time, Dr Athani added. 
 
 Police in Delhi have opened roads and metro stations shut since Monday as protests against the incident eased. 
 
 The government has tried to halt the rising anger by announcing a series of measures intended to make Delhi safer for women. 
 
 These include more police night patrols, checks on bus drivers and their assistants, and the banning of buses with tinted windows or curtains. 
 
 The government has also said that it will post the photos, names and addresses of convicted rapists on official websites to shame them. 
 
 But the protesters say the government's pledge to seek life sentences for the attackers is not enough - many are calling for the death penalty. 
 
 The victim and her friend had been to see a film when they boarded the bus in the Munirka area, intending to travel to Dwarka in south-west Delhi. 
 
 Police said she was raped for nearly an hour, and both she and her companion were beaten with iron bars and thrown out of the moving bus into a Delhi street.
– The New Delhi woman whose rape set off huge protests is now "fighting for her life" in a Singapore hospital, its chief executive says. "In addition to her prior cardiac arrest, she also had infection of her lungs and abdomen, as well as significant brain injury." She has already been through three surgeries in India, the Times of India notes. Meanwhile, another woman who reported a gang rape has committed suicide, the AP reports. Two officers have now been fired and one suspended in that case; insiders say that instead of responding to the case, police harassed the 18-year-old after she reported it on Nov. 27. The three suspects in the attack weren't arrested until last night. Another police officer has been suspended in a third rape case after he reportedly refused to register the allegations against a driver.