A German professor has apologised after turning down a student because of India's rape problem

After an unnamed student wrote to Professor Annette G. Beck-Sickinger, at Leipzig University, the German professor replied saying she couldn't accept him because of India's attitude to rape.

She wrote: “Unfortunately I don’t accept any Indian male students for internships. We hear a lot about the rape problem in India, which I cannot support.

“I have many female friends in my group, so I think this attitude is something that I cannot support.”

When the applicant replied saying that he believed Professor Sickinger to overly generalising, she replied that: “I fully agree that this is a generalisation and may not apply to individuals. However it is unbelievable that Indian society is not able to solve this problem for many years now.”

She added that she felt “multi-rape” crimes in India were emblematic of the country’s attitude to women and added that the rejection of male Indian students for these reasons was a practice carried out by “many female professors” in Germany.

Some claimed that the email was so shocking that it must be a hoax, however when the Professor was contacted by HuffPost India, she confirmed the authenticity of the email. She reportedly stated that her lab was full and that this had led to an “unpleasant discussion” with one student.

“I apologise if I caused any misunderstanding, but the email was taken out of context.”

After screenshots posted on the website Quora went viral, the German ambassador, Michael Steiner wrote a letter to Professor Sickinger condemning the nature of her rejection.

He said: “Let me make it clear at the outset that I strongly object to [your actions].

He continued: “Yesterday we celebrated International Women’s Day at the German Embassy here in Delhi with many local activists including men. Your oversimplifying and discriminating generalization is an offense to these woman and men ardently committed to furthering women empowerment in India.

“Let’s be clear: India is not a country full of rapists.”

India has been the subject of intense media scrutiny regarding social attitudes towards rape.

Last week, the Indian government issued an order to block the showing the documentary India’s Daughter, the subject of which was a brutal 2012 brutal gang-rape and murder of a 23-year-old woman in Delhi.

In the documentary, one of the men sentenced for the crime stated that: “A girl is far more responsible for rape than a boy.”

In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' Show all 13 1 /13 In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Sohan, father and uncle of Murti and Pushpa, the two girls who were raped and hanged in Katra Sadatganj in Uttar Pradesh, is comforted by his mother (Photo Simon de Trey-White) Simon de Trey-White In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Murti's mother is briefed by the local Senior Superintendant of Police Atul Saxena (Photo Simon de Trey-White) Simon de Trey-White In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Sohan (55) holds passport sized images in his hands of his daughter Murti (right) and niece Pushpa (left) in Katra village, Ushait near Baduan, Uttar Pradesh (Photo Simon de Trey-White) Simon de Trey-White In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Murti’s brother Veerendar (Photo Simon de Trey-White) Simon de Trey-White In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Villagers stand by the mango tree from which the two girls were hanged (Photo Simon de Trey-White) In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Villagers and media throng the home of the murdered teenage girls (Photo Simon de Trey-White) In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Congress party Vice President Rahul Gandhi interacts with women during his visit to the village of the two girls In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Demonstrators from All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) hold placards and shout slogans during a protest in New Delhi against the recent killings In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Members of the All India Democratic Women's Association (AIDWA) shout slogans during the protest In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Members of Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union shout slogans as they participate in a protest against the gang rape In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape A member of Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union shouts slogans In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape An activist places a candle on a pavement during a candle lit vigil to protest against the gang rape of two teenage girls In pictures: India in shock after teenage girls 'gang raped and hanged' India gang rape Activists hold candles during a vigil

On Thursday, a man accused of rape was dragged from his cell in the city of Dimapur, Nagaland and beaten to death by a vigilante mob before being strung on the city’s clock tower.

According to crime statistics on the Nation Master website, Germany has the 43rd highest proportionate rate of rape in the world whilst India is in equal 94th.