A mosque in New Delhi. (Wikimedia Commons)

The suicide of one of the gang rape suspects facing the death penalty in Indian court has created a heated debate about the safety ethics of Indian prison officials, according to the Washington Post.

The man's father and some of the other defendants' lawyers have spoken to the press about what they see was a major lapse in the prison's duty to keep its prisoners safe. Some prison activists have also spoken out about the need to respect prisoners' safety.

The suspect's father has claimed that his son was raped in the jail and that his presumed suicide was actually murder.

He claimed that he visited his son four days before his death and that he had noticed no signs of despair. He also said his son's hand was injured and he would be physically incapable of hanging himself.

Ram Singh was on trial for the gang rape and murder of a woman in December. He was allegedly the driver of the bus where the woman was raped and her male companion beaten. The woman died two weeks later of major internal wounds.

Authorities said that Singh shared a jail cell with three other inmates in New Delhi and that he hanged himself either with his own clothes or a bed sheet about 5:30 a.m. Monday.

Read more of Neon Tommy's coverage of the case here.

Reach Executive Producer Michael Juliani here.