Crimes against women on the rise: Supreme Court

New Delhi: Despite the progress made by women in education and in various fields and changes brought in ideas of women’s rights, respect for women is on the decline and crimes against them are on the rise, the Supreme Court observed this on Friday, calling for concerted efforts to prevent such crimes.

In her separate judgment upholding death sentence of the four accused, Justice R. Banumathi said offences against women are not a women’s issue alone but human rights issue too. Rising crimes against women is an area of concern for the lawmakers and it points out an urgent need to study in depth the root of the problem and to find out its remedy through a strict law and order regime. There are a number of legislations and numerous penal provisions to punish the offenders of violence against women. However, it becomes important to ensure that gender justice does not remain only on paper.

She said the incident of gangrape on the night of December 16, 2012, in the capital sparked public protest not only in Delhi but nationwide. The incident shocked the nation and generated public rage. A committee headed by Justice J.S. Verma, former chief justice of India, was constituted to suggest amendments to deal with sexual offences more sternly and effectively in future. The committee’s suggestions led to the enactment of Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, which, inter alia, 322 brought in substantive as well as procedural reforms in the core areas of rape law.

However, Justice Banamuthi said a total of 3,27,394 cases of crime against women were reported in 2015, which shows an increase of over 43% in crime against women since 2011, when 2,28,650 cases were reported. A percentage change of 110.5% in the cases of crime against women has been witnessed over the past decade (2005 to 2015), meaning thereby that crimes against women has more than doubled in a decade. An overall crime 318 rate under the head ‘crime against women’ was reported as 53.9% in 2015, with Delhi UT at the top spot.

Justice Banumathi said: “We live in a civilised society where law and order is supreme and the citizens enjoy inviolable fundamental human rights. But when the incident of gangrape like the present one surfaces, it causes ripples in the conscience of society and serious doubts are raised as to whether we really live in a civilised society driven by rule of law. Certainly, whenever such grave violations of human dignity come to fore, an unknown sense of insecurity and helplessness grabs the entire society, women in particular, and the only succour people look for, is the state to take command of the situation and remedy it effectively.

She pointed out that except Dhananjay Chatterjee of Kolkata, who was given death sentence, the country has not witnessed any execution for over a decade as death sentences are commuted as life term. Terrorists Afzal Guru, Ajmal Kazab and Yakub Memon were executed for different reasons but other executions had not taken place.

She said stringent legislation and punishments alone may not be sufficient for fighting increasing crimes against women. Public at large, in particular men, are to be sensitised on gender justice.

“The battle for gender justice can be won only with strict implementation of legislative provisions, sensitisation of public, taking other proactive steps at all levels for combating violence against women and ensuring widespread attitudinal changes and comprehensive change in the existing mindset. We hope that this incident will pave the way for the same.”