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.
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