Zero-tolerance approach a must to curb crimes against women
THE horrific gangrape and murder of a junior doctor at a medical college and hospital in Kolkata has triggered national outrage. This was reflected in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day address.
Alluding to the incident, Modi said: “I would like to express my pain once again, from the Red Fort today. As a society, we will have to think seriously about the atrocities against women that are happening — there is outrage against this in the country. I can feel this outrage. The country, society and state governments will have to take this seriously.” He added that such cases of crime against women should be investigated speedily “and those responsible should be punished without delay”.
The victim in the Kolkata case is being referred to as Abhaya by her shell-shocked colleagues, recalling the horrific 2012 Delhi gangrape-murder that was termed the ‘Nirbhaya’ case; it took eight years before the perpetrators were finally brought to justice in March 2020.
Whether the culprits in the Abhaya case will be awarded exemplary punishment is a moot point, as the case has already generated a predictable political slugfest. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) government led by CM Mamata Banerjee has accused the Opposition parties (BJP, Congress and CPI) of muddying the waters. Some very anomalous developments characterise the Abhaya case.
While law and order is a state subject, in what amounts to a no-confidence signal against the local police, Mamata has backed the transfer of the case probe to the CBI and demanded that the perpetrators be apprehended and tried expeditiously. Preliminary reports about how the case was handled by the local police in the early stages of the investigation have raised many troubling questions, including allegations of a botched cover-up attempt to shield the perpetrators. A rebuke by the Calcutta High Court has shamed the police. To compound the alleged perfidy by the state government, the principal of the medical college concerned was allowed to ‘resign’ but was immediately appointed at another local hospital, thereby exonerating him of the lapses resulting in the Abhaya tragedy. Even wellwishers of the TMC are dismayed.
The sexual violence unleashed on the doctor is gut-wrenching. Hopefully, the CBI will be able to move swiftly, even as the Abhaya case is the tip of a murky iceberg. In the same fortnight, a nurse returning home after night duty at an Uttarakhand hospital was sexually assaulted and murdered (July 30); the accused was arrested a week later from Bareilly. India’s rape statistics indicate that 90 such dastardly incidents are reported daily. This may be relatively low by global standards — as per an estimate, India reports 1.8 rape cases per 100,000 population, while the figures for Botswana and South Africa are 92.9 and 72.1, respectively. However, this is callous justification for the deplorable trends related to the security and safety of women and the girl child over the past two decades. A large number of rape and molestation cases do not get reported by the families of the victims. Alas, in many instances, close family members are the culprits.
Despite Nirbhaya-2012 and the outrage it generated at that time, the response of both the state and society has not changed for the better in any visible manner. Immediate uproar after every ghastly incident is followed by political platitudes. The ‘Beti Bachao’ (save the girl child) pledge, made with fanfare by Modi 1.0 in January 2015, remains a mere slogan. The law is enforced in a selective manner. Once assured of state patronage, the ubiquitous male predator remains on the prowl and vulnerable women are exploited, whether at the workplace (as in the Abhaya case) or on the streets (Nirbhaya case).
PM Modi made an intriguing observation in his August 15 address when he highlighted the importance of creating a ‘fear of consequences of rape’. He said: “When an incident of rape happens, the media discusses the case at length, but when these perpetrators are brought to book, there is very little discussion on the same. We need to speak about the action taken on such criminals so that it can act as a deterrent.”
The plight of victims in high-profile rape cases and the relief accorded by the state to the accused are stark in cases such as that of Bilkis Bano (2002 Gujarat riots); clearly, political considerations trump the sanctity of the law. Electoral compulsions have made a mockery of justice; the perpetrators, instead of being brought to book, are feted and treated with kid gloves. The sordid Gurmeet Ram Rahim saga and the latitude given by the Modi government to ex-MP and former wrestling federation chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh are illustrative.
Alas, the Indian ecosystem stinks when it comes to political rectitude and institutional integrity. This is borne out by a disturbing trend. The nexus between crime and politics in India was outlined in the 1993 Vohra committee report, but to little avail.
An ADR (Association for Democratic Reforms) survey after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections revealed that 251 (46 per cent) of the 543 newly elected MPs had criminal cases registered against them and 27 had been convicted. In 2023, it was estimated that 134 sitting MPs and MLAs were facing cases related to crimes against women; this list included 21 MPs and 113 MLAs.
Chanakya’s tenet that the ruler (the elected leader in the current times) has to be guided by the yogakshema (welfare) of the citizens, particularly vulnerable ones such as women, must come back into focus for the Indian political class. PM Modi needs to ponder deeply over the Kautilyan maxim, “Prajaa sukhe sukham rajyah, Prajanam cha hiteh hitam” (in the welfare and happiness of the people lies the king’s welfare and happiness) and ensure that his government can walk the talk when it comes to streerakshana (women’s safety), lest sophistry become his legacy.
