Another Indian woman set on fire after rape

A rape victim was set on fire on her way to court in northern India on Thursday, with her alleged rapists among five men arrested for attack, according to local media reports.

The 23-year-old woman was in critical condition after suffering burns to 90 per cent pf her body, doctors said.

She was being treated at a hospital in Lucknow, capital of Uttar Pradesh state.

In March this year she lodged a police complaint accusing two men of raping her and filming the assault. One of the accused was reportedly granted bail last week while the other was on the run.

The Uttar Pradesh government ordered state police to submit a report on the case and promised to pay all costs for the victim's treatment.

Thursday's attack came amid a national outcry over the gang rape and murder of a woman in south India last week whose body was then set on fire by her attackers. Four men have been arrested.

The charred body of the 27-year-old veterinarian was found under an overpass in Hyderabad city on November 27.

The attack reignited anger over the high number of sexual assaults on women in India and the long delays in bring the attackers to justice through the country's overburdened legal system.

More than 33,000 women were raped in India in 2017, according to the latest official figures, with an average of 90 cases reported each day.

A South Indian film director stoked further anger this week by suggesting that the government legalise "non-violent" rape so that rapists would not feel the need to kill their victims.

In comments posted on Facebook after the Hyderabad rape, which have since been deleted, Daniel Shravan said women should carry condoms and "be educated on rapes. (ie Girls should not deny sexual desires of men). Only then these types of things will not happen."