Hundreds of women students have marched out of university campuses into the streets of Delhi, India's capital, to demand justice and an end to sexual violence, after a series of brutal rapes in the city in recent weeks. Bold slogans carried on placards, such as "Girls don't need curfews, rapists need consequences", have also fuelled a wider social media campaign for women's safety.

The protests were triggered by several cases, including the alleged gang-rape of a 17-year-old in a public park near Delhi University by three men who reportedly posed as police officers. A week earlier, another 17-year-old was allegedly gang-raped and murdered in Delhi's Swaroop Nagar neighbourhood, and her body was found days later in a field. Rapes of an 11-year-old and a six-year-old were reported in the same month, and last month a 16-year-old was allegedly raped by a bus driver and a conductor on a sleeper bus. This week, India's Supreme Court said the five successive cases "starkly underlined a systematic failure" and drew "painful parallels" to the 2012 Nirbhaya case, in which a woman was gang-raped on a bus in Delhi and later died of her injuries. That case prompted international outrage, new legislation and government promises.

Many protesters say little has changed in the 14 years since. Official statistics suggest a woman is raped in India every 20 minutes, though the true figure is believed to be higher because of chronic under-reporting. Students also object to the official response, which they say again restricts women rather than targeting offenders: women were told to avoid parks at night, classes were briefly halted at a prestigious women's college, and many hostels already impose strict curfews. "A demand for more surveillance is not a solution," said Aranya Rathore, 25, a Delhi University student. "In fact, it's going to curtail our freedom more."

While better lighting and policing are among the demands, protesters stress that deeper social change is needed. "We are not marching for safety, we are here to protest for our freedom," said Vaishnavi Dhruw, 21. Women describe spending much of their time on safety logistics, from avoiding travel alone to sharing live locations, and say blame tends to fall on victims. Some say harassment is common on campus too, and are calling for better systems for reporting assault; the university has not responded.

The protests highlight a dilemma for Indian women, who are more educated and have more job opportunities than ever, yet still face threats to their safety and conservative family pressures. Some choose schools and jobs based on proximity to home rather than ambition. Participants link the marches to the recent youth-led "cockroach" movement over education reform. "The days of women being silent is over," said 17-year-old Subhani.