Sunday 23 December 2012

Crime against women in India - Causes & Plausible Corrective Actions

In the last few years the media coverage of crime against women and children in India has been on the rise[1]. Reading ghastly stories first thing in the morning is an unpleasant start to the day; only at some point I realize that an unnerving read for me is someone else’s life altering experience. Conjuring up images of these unpleasant headlines and imagining what the victims must have undergone is spine chilling; resulting in emotional and physical responses. These cause agitation, anger and frustration. I can calm my agitated mind and rationalize my anger. However, my frustration needs answers that most believe lie with those in the seats of governance or in positions of law enforcement. Of course those in positions of power and influence are answerable but so is the man on the street.  

In most Asian cultures girls are taught from childhood to be “soft spoken”, not to be overly assertive and not to have strong opinions. All these are supposedly to help them mould easily post marriage. These values by themselves may not be incorrect; however, being imparted to girls in isolation of boys become toxic. On the one hand women are taught to be submissive and on the other hand aggressive and opinionated men are applauded. This is the first step to justifying male ego and superiority[2]. How do authorities take control of this misguidance in families? Should there be laws against such cultural tendencies? This grooming and influence exerted on children from a tender age can only be changed by ordinary citizens and while this is time process to bear fruit over generations, it is a way to ingrain respect and equality.

I am sure none of us are willing to wait another generation for a safer world and why should we! Our children and women have the right to say no and adults and men need to understand that when asked to stop they need to do so. In the immediate future schools and families need to start empowering children to be assertive. Women need to be heard and their wishes respected. The smallest of incidents at work place or in families need to be taken cognizance of. Complaints need to be dealt with seriously.

I recollect an incident a few years ago when at the salon I visit; I felt that the man giving me a head massage was probably over stepping the line (see how I am writing probably. Women are made to think that such incidents could be fragments of their own imaginations). I was uncomfortable and decided to speak to the management. My complaint went unnoticed and then there was another woman who had a similar experience. Even her complaint went unattended and thus to protect my own self-respect I switched salons. In the absence of authorities, this incident could have been dealt with had ordinary citizens stood together. However, we have become a society that accepts dignity infringements as normal. It is not something we deem unacceptable unless it turns into a grave incident.

I believe I should have followed through my complaint and taken it to law enforcement. I did think about it but eventually let the idea drop. The police do not instill confidence in me; on the contrary they scare me away. Our cops are typically not sensitive to complainants of harassment and/or sexual violence[3]. It is incorrect of me to blame them entirely. Given that most of the police force is male[4] and we are a patriarchal society with the above mentioned trends all pervasive; it is not without training and sensitization that cops can be expected to be empathetic to victims of such crimes. While increasing women cops may not solve the problem, there exists some evidence that the higher the police to population ratio and the higher the number of women police stations, the lower the number of incidents of crime against women. This is evidenced by the table below[5].

  Table 1: Overview of State wise data on Police Force and Crime Against Women
State
Population ('000)
Policemen per
Lakh of
Population
# of Women
Police Stations
Women Police
Station / Total
Population*
Total Crime
Against Women /
Total Population*
Rape Incidents /
Total Population*
Assam
31,089
176.20
1.00
0.003%
3.30%
0.55%
West Bengal
90,471
66.00
0.00
0.000%
2.91%
0.26%
Tripura
3,621
1,012.10
1.00
0.028%
2.91%
0.57%
Rajasthan
67,366
105.40
24.00
0.036%
2.56%
0.27%
Delhi
18,473
448.30
0.00
0.000%
2.37%
0.31%
Andhra
84,333
107.30
32.00
0.038%
2.02%
0.17%
Kerala
35,049
131.10
3.00
0.009%
1.92%
0.32%
Haryana
24,676
179.70
2.00
0.008%
1.81%
0.30%
Gujarat
58,379
110.30
31.00
0.053%
1.36%
0.08%
MP
72,407
104.60
9.00
0.012%
1.25%
0.47%
Orissa
40,926
106.20
6.00
0.015%
1.20%
0.27%
J&K
13,477
541.60
2.00
0.015%
1.18%
0.21%
Chandigarh
1,132
542.70
0.00
0.000%
1.07%
0.24%
Arunachal Pr.
1,238
555.90
0.00
0.000%
0.97%
0.34%
Chhattisgarh
24,632
169.00
4.00
0.016%
0.96%
0.43%
UP
199,898
74.60
71.00
0.036%
0.95%
0.10%
Maharashtra
110,383
124.90
0.00
0.000%
0.94%
0.15%
Karnataka
58,945
138.80
10.00
0.017%
0.90%
0.11%
Himachal Pr.
6,701
200.00
0.00
0.000%
0.90%
0.25%
Mizoram
1,011
1,044.80
0.00
0.000%
0.85%
0.76%
Punjab
27,339
249.90
5.00
0.018%
0.83%
0.18%
Bihar
97,538
64.10
0.00
0.000%
0.82%
0.10%
Uttarakhand
9,850
160.60
2.00
0.020%
0.81%
0.13%
Manipur
2,710
846.40
0.00
0.000%
0.77%
0.20%
Jharkhand
31,035
164.60
22.00
0.071%
0.77%
0.25%
Meghalaya
2,617
386.90
7.00
0.267%
0.72%
0.50%
And & Nic Isl
434
790.60
0.00
0.000%
0.69%
0.30%
Tamil Nadu
67,759
151.00
196.00
0.289%
0.65%
0.10%
Dadar N Hav
284
100.00
1.00
0.352%
0.53%
0.14%
Sikkim
612
642.50
0.00
0.000%
0.49%
0.26%
Goa
1,756
292.50
1.00
0.057%
0.37%
0.17%
Daman & Diiu
201
130.80
0.00
0.000%
0.25%
0.05%
Puducherry
1,121
263.30
3.00
0.268%
0.24%
0.06%
Nagaland
2,257
1,069.80
0.00
0.000%
0.12%
0.10%
Lakshadweep
73
308.20
0.00
0.000%
0.00%
0.00%

If one looks at West Bengal and UP the picture is quite clear. The number of policemen to per lakh population is the lowest (barring Lakshadweep) in the country for these densely populated states. The number of women police stations is appallingly low too and the states contribute 27% of crime against women in the country. This indicates the need to invest more in recruitment and training of police force. Police force in India is a state subject and it is up to state governments to take action. Here the situation is in dire straits. For example, in UP less than 5% of the state’s budget is allocated for police force expenditure and of the total police expenditure only 1.5% is allocated to police training. In West Bengal the figures are 2.78% and 0.51% respectively. Overall in the country, only 1.41% of the police expenditure is allocated to training[6].  It is time that budget allocations per state see some change.

In addition to training and recruitment, there needs to be more transparency and stringency in the way cases of crime against women are handled. From 2009 to 2011 there has been a ca. 13% increase in total number of crime against women cases registered across the country. However, in the same time frame, the case chargesheet rate has decreased from almost 80% to 78% and the conviction rate has come down from 14% to 13%[7]. Chargesheet decrease can potentially be tied with police dissuasion, delays or corruption[8] and conviction has a correlation to evidence providing. Thus the police force needs to be made more accountable to the victims and the system.

Changes in budget and action by governments are determined by willingness of the lawmakers. This willingness on the part of the lawmakers today is subject in most situations that need action on a yesterday basis, across the country.  To see what immediate remedies are provided by the law to victims I went back to my old research and was stunned[9]! The Indian Penal Code was introduced in 1860 and the first amendments to laws relating to rape and sexual assault were effected in 1983; over 100 years later! Post that the only changes made were in 2005 and they related to expediting trials and protecting evidence in case witnesses turn hostile. The IPC has adopted the term sexual assault in place of rape in some acts; however, insensitive practices such as those dictated by Section 155 (4) of the Evidence Act remain intact. This act specifically requires the victim be cross examined in the presence of the accused and that a detail of her past sexual history be noted as well. Just as there was an overhaul to the child sexual abuse laws[10], those pertaining to crime against women must also be modified according to the times. And yes, the cases of heinous crimes against women need speedy action.

According to a report by Law Commission of India over 72.58 lakh (7.258 million) cognizable criminal cases under IPC were pending trials in 2010. Another 48.54 (4.854 million) cognizable criminal cases under Special and Local Laws were pending trial[11].  These point to an overall overburdened judicial system. The delays are due to many reasons, including corruption at police level and a shortage of legal professionals[12]. Thus, maybe we need to set up special courts like juvenile courts to tackle crime against women. Fast track courts are set up to deal with certain incidents which are more severe than the others, which is a temporary solution. A permanent and efficient method needs to be found.  

Reducing the penetration of crime against women is not easy. Neither can it be done in isolation by the system nor the citizens. It has to be a joint effort and an effort that is devoid of excess emotion and anger. It needs to be a rationale and thought through approach to build a society which can take care of its own and also put in threats that are real deterrents.  We are a young nation still and we have a long way to go. If we strengthen our foundation today then we have a secure future, else we will crumble like a pack of cards. As with fight against corruption and lawlessness, the fight to protect our women needs to be fought with objectivity, unity, maturity and pure intent.

Disclaimer: The thoughts presented are solely of the author and not endorsed by any other person, party or affiliate. The sources of data are mentioned to the extent possible. Your thoughts and comments are welcome



[1]  According to United Nations data, reported cases of rape in India increased ca. 21% from 2004 to 2010 and the cases of child sexual abuse increased ca. 55% over the same time frame
[2] In a study conducted by J Lee of University of Southern Mississippi in 2005, on the attitude of rape: a comparison between Asian and Caucasian students the results of multivariate analyses indicated that Asian students were more likely to believe that victims of rape should be held responsible for the crime
[3] An investigative report jointly conducted by NDTV and Tehelka in 2012 showed that police officers believe that “women are responsible for their rape.”
[4] Total civil and armed police force strength in 2011 according to Bureau of Police Research & Development was 2,064,370 of which only 71,756 were women cops (3%)
[5] Sources: Bureau of Police Research & Development and National Crime Research Bureau
[6] Source: Bureau of Police Research & Development 2011 data
[7] Source: National Crime Records Bureau
[8] Under the criminal procedure code the Magistrate frames the charges. In case of investigations made by the police, in terms of Sec.173 of Code of Criminal Procedure the officer in-charge of the police station shall forward a report in the form prescribed to the Magistrate empowered to take cognizance of the offence. (http://firstappeal.blogspot.in/2007/09/what-is-chargesheet.html). For the same please also refer footnote 11
[10] Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences Bill, 2011 was passed into Act in May 2012. This is one step forward and indicates that there probably is some willingness to protect children at least.