Indian women given kitchen knives, chilli to fend off rapists

MUMBAI (Reuters) - India's radical Hindu nationalist party governing Mumbai has handed out kitchen knives and chilli powder to women following a gang rape in the capital New Delhi that ignited a national debate on the best way to tackle sex crimes.

The Shiv Sena party, an ally of the main opposition BJP, said it had handed out 21,000 knives with three-inch (7 cm) blades to women in the city and surrounding areas and plans to distribute 100,000.