Indian journalist faces threats over anti-rape cartoon

Indian journalist and cartoonist, Sathi Vadlamudi's who received threats over an anti-rape illustration, says she will not back down. 

The journalist started receiving online threats after she posted a cartoon depicting a conversation between Hindu deity Ram and his wife, Sita, according to the BBC.

The cartoon shows Sita telling Ram she is "glad" she was kidnapped by demon king Ravan and not her husband's followers. The illustration was made in the wake of two heinous cases of rape which made headlines in India last week. 

After the cartoon was published, Vadlamudi said she has received numerous threats online, with many calling for her arrest.

The police have registered a case against a right-wing group which insisted the cartoon hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus. 

The Committee to Protect Journalists, a non-governmental organisation, has ranked India as a country with a poor record in safeguarding journalists. With at least 27 journalists having been murdered because of their work in India since 1992.

India has been reeling from the outrage over two recent rape incidents. An eight-year-old Muslim girl was raped and murdered in Kathua district while a 16-year-old girl attempted suicide outside a BJP's lawmaker's house after alleging that he raped her. 

The incidents have divided the national sentiment with some demanding justice for the rape victims, while far-right nationalists have been supporting the accused.