One expected that the stiffer penalties introduced by the government after the fatal gang rape of a woman on a bus in Delhi in December 2012 would have deterred Indian men from committing crimes against women. On the contrary, there has been a sharp spike in violence against women. One of the main reasons is that there is no fear of law in the country as the conviction rate is abysmally very low.
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| courtesy: independent.co.uk |
According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) annual report in 2016, the crimes against women have almost doubled since 2007. The crimes against women every hour went up to 39 in 2016 as compared to 21 in 2007. There were 40,000 rape cases registered in 2016, up from 25,000 in 2012, the latest data show. But these figures are far from truth as many women don’t report crimes, particularly rape or domestic violence, fearing societal pressure. The situation is worse in rural areas where rapes are committed by close family members as well as neighbours. Therefore, most of these cases are hardly reported. And in majority of cases, the culprits get away either by buying the silence of the victims or the use of muscle power.
The crimes against women every hour went up to 39 in 2016 as
compared to 21 in 2007. There were 40,000 rape cases registered
in 2016, up from 25,000 in 2012, the latest data show.
With a conviction rate of under 19 percent and that too over lengthy trials which continue for several years if not decades, families of victims think not twice but hundred times before mustering courage to file cases against the culprits. Even if some dare to seek justice, the lengthy and tiring judicial process, which consumes both time and money, is a major deterrent. Though the government introduced the fast track courts to expedite such cases, the progress is far from satisfactory.
The shortage of judges is again something to be blamed for the judicial delays. In 2016, the then Chief Justice of India, T. S. Thakur, had pointed to the inadequacy of judicial strength as the main reason behind the delay in trials. He suggested that there should be 70,000 judges whereas the figure is just 17,000.
Often the police, which is supposed to protect the law, collude with the accused and make the case weaker which does not stand the scrutiny of the courts. The NCRB data show that only one-fourth of those charged with sexual violence are convicted because prosecutors fail to prove the case in the absence of concrete evidence leading to the freedom of the offender. This only emboldens the offender to repeat his crime, at times, even against the same victim. Police often coerce victims to settle the case with the offenders rather than approaching courts so as to keep their case diaries clean. One of the biggest problems women face in India is that the onus is on the victim to prove the crime. A victim has to go through the same pain as she is forced to narrate her trauma first to the police, then to her lawyer and finally in the courtroom. In smaller towns and villages, there is hardly any policewoman in a police station, which prevents many victims to approach the law.
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| courtesy: cnn.com |
But, it is the society which is to blame for the crimes against women. Ironically, the girls have to face problems even before their birth. They are viewed as inferior to men and liability to the family. The inhuman practice of abortion of female fetuses shows the sick mentality of the society. Then they are subjected to child marriage, dowry killings and domestic violence.
Mere better policing and setting up fast track courts will not solve the problem. Until and unless we change our attitude towards women, the situation will not change. For that we, the society, has to change.
