The Delhi Police on Friday decided to register a case against Zee News after the channel aired an interview with the male friend of the girl who was gang-raped here on December 16, a crime to which he is the lone witness.

The case will be filed under Section 228 (A) of the Indian Penal Code, which pertains to disclosure of identity of victims of certain offences, including rape, Delhi Police spokesperson Rajan Bhagat said.

Critical of Delhi Police

In the interview, the person severely criticised the time taken by the police to respond and the indifference of the public while he and the girl lay on the road after being thrown out of the bus.

He said that after they were stripped and thrown off the bus they tried to stop people passing by, but no one stopped for about 25 minutes.

Three police control room vans arrived at the scene after about 45 minutes. But they wasted time in deciding under which police station’s jurisdiction the case fell, he said. The horrendous crime led to widespread public protests in several parts of the country.