Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi on Friday voiced her happiness after the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence of all convicts in the Nirbhaya gang-rape case.
"I am happy that the Supreme court has reconfirmed the death sentence of these rapists. It was truly a heinous crime," Gandhi told CNN-News18 channel.
She said the rape laws were tightened after the December 16, 2012 gang-rape incident that had shocked the nation.
"The fifth one (juvenile accused) got away because of his age. The terrible crime and suffering endured by Nirbhaya resulted in tightening of rape laws. In the Juvenile Justice Act the age is reduced to 16. So we can catch more offenders in future," she said.
She added that the five years taken by the judicial system to reach this point was a long time. "But in the history of Indian law, it is actually a short time," she said.
She said her ministry was going to open a portal for women to register complaints against sexual harassment.