Girl, 14, dies and her mother is seriously injured after being thrown off a moving bus in India after gang of passengers and the conductor sexually assaulted them

A 14-year-old girl has died and her mother has been left severely injured after they were thrown off a moving bus following a sexual assault in India.

Arshdeep Kaur and her mother Shinder, were travelling from their home in Punjab, northern India, to visit relatives when a group of about half a dozen men began harassing them.

The men grabbed Arshdeep and made several attempts to 'molest' her and her mother, but instead of defending them, the bus staff joined in the sexual assault.

The assault continued until the bus slowed down and mother and daughter could break free, however as they attempted to get off the bus, Mrs Kaur says they were pushed. 

Arshdeep and Mrs Kaur both suffered serious injuries, and the 14-year-old later died in hospital. 

'No one helped. They first pushed my daughter off the bus, then me,' Mrs Kaur told NDTV from her hospital bed today. 

Shortly after the pair had been pushed off, the bus stopped by the roadside and the alleged perpetrators, including the conductor, cleaner and driver fled the scene.

The three could later be apprehended and police have launched an investigation into the incident.

There has a heightened sensitivity to the issue of sexual assault in India in recent weeks after officials banned a documentary about the 2012 gang rape and murder of an Indian student in Delhi.

Officials said the documentary, called India's Daughter, would cause further disorder if it was shown, following a number of protests and incidents of vigilante justice in the country.

The documentary explained the brutal rape and murder of 23-year-old student Jyoti Singh, who was attacked on a bus when she returned home from the cinema.

One of the six men convicted of the attack, bus driver Mukesh Singh, was interviewed in prison and told researchers that had Jyoti not fought back she would not have been killed.

Her death led to protests throughout India and outraged the world.