Delhi court sentences Uber rapist to life imprisonment

A court in India has sentenced an Uber driver to life in prison for raping a female passenger in New Delhi in December 2014. Shiv Kumar Yadav, 32, was convicted of four charges, one of which included endangering the woman's life while raping her.

A 25-year-old finance executive was abducted and raped by the Uber driver as she returned home from dinner with friends. The incident sparked outrage across the country as it was revealed that Uber had failed to carry out background checks on its drivers, including Yadav, who had previously been accused of assaulting women. Following the incident, Uber was banned in Delhi, however, the ban is yet to be enforced.

The rape victim has said that she fell asleep in the taxi while returning home after dinner on 5 December and when she woke up she realised that the taxi was parked in a secluded area of the city. Yadav then proceeded to rape her before leaving her near her home in north Delhi. The sentencing was due to be issued on 30 October but was delayed due to a shortage of police in Delhi, where a summit of African leaders was being held.

Yadav appeared to be "stunned" when his sentencing of life imprisonment was announced, according to the Times of India. His parents, wife and children were also present in the courtroom when the verdict was issued. In addition to life imprisonment, the court also imposed a fine of Rs 21,000 (£208) and ordered for his family to be rehabilitated and provided with compensation due to their low financial background.

India recorded 26,735 rapes in 2014, with more than 2,000 of them taking place in Delhi. Yadav was tried by one of the fast-track courts that was set up in 2013 following the brutal gang-rape of a student on a bus in Delhi. The gang-rape sparked nationwide protests across the country as women demanded the government to do more to tackle the growing number of rapes in India.

Shiv Kumar Yadav was trending on Twitter shortly after the sentence was delivered, with people taking to social media to welcome the verdict.