By Dr. Gyan Pathak
Only a few months ago, RSS-BJP clan had created hype around “Nari Shakti Vandan”, just after PM Narendra Modi government had introduce Women’s Reservation Bill, 2023 on September 19 in a special session of Parliament. Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam was the new epithet for the Bill which was brought forward as if BJP was the only champion of the women’s cause. In November 2023 state elections, RSS-BJP clan campaigned against ruling opposition states claiming women were not safe there, as if only opposition parties are at fault. However, in the beginning of December 2023, when Crime in India report for 2022 was released we knew that crime against in India rose sharply by 4 per cent, and situation was worse even in BJP ruled sates, such as Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. And now a victim woman judge in Uttar Pradesh seeks permission from Supreme Court of India to die with dignity, since she was unable to get justice.
A total of 4,45,256 cases of crime against women were registered during 2022, showing an increase of 4.0% over 2021 (4,28,278 cases). Majority of cases under crime against women under IPC were registered under ‘Cruelty by Husband or His Relatives’ (31.4%) followed by ‘Kidnapping & Abduction of Women’ (19.2%), ‘Assault on Women with Intent to Outrage her Modesty’ (18.7%), and ‘Rape’ (7.1%). The crime rate registered per lakh women population was 66.4 in 2022 in comparison with 64.5 in 2021.
How serious PM Modi led Union Government is, as far as crime in India is concerned, can be understood just by the fact that as many other data, this crime data was also delayed by at least five months, during which no one knew about the correct figure. It would have been released much earlier than the “Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam” but then how RSS-BJP could claim “Nari Shakti Vandan” when the crime against women was rising by 4 per cent? Then there was election in November 2023, and the revelation that crime against women was worse even in BJP ruled states would have prevented the RSS-BJP clan to campaign against opposition rules for rising crime against women. Thus delay in releasing the report is now being seen as mere politics, to create advantage to BJP.
Chief Justice of India, Justice D Y Chandrachud has taken the open letter of the woman judge from Uttar Pradesh seriously that went viral on social media alleging sexual harassment by a senior and requesting permission to kill herself. “Kindly permit me to end my life in a dignified way,” the woman requested. She said that a probe was ordered into her allegations after she filed a complaint with the Internal Complaints Committee of the High Court in July 2023, but the inquiry is “a farce and a sham.” It is just an example, how the woman victims are being treated in our country, which requires attention of the judiciary and everyone involved in the Criminal Justice Administrations across India, since the crime against women is rising sharply.
Crime against women in India under Indian Penal Code (IPC) and under the Special and Local Laws (SLL) are on the rise. In terms of number of crime in 2022, Uttar Pradesh was worst with 65743 cases, followed by 45331 in Maharashtra, 45058 in Rajasthan, 34738 in West Bengal, and 32765 in Madhya Pradesh.
As for the crime rate per lakh population in 2022 is concerned Telangana was worst with 117, followed by 115.1 in Rajasthan, 118.7 in Haryana, 103.3 in Odisha, and 96.2 in Andhra Pradesh. In states, crime against woman rate is 65.4, in UTs 101.8, and all India rate is 66.4. Crime against women in Delhi is 144.4. The far worse record of crime against women in Union Territories show that where the PM Modi led government is directly responsible for administering the rule of law through policing directly under its nose is performing far worse than the states, both ruled by the BJP and the opposition political parties.
It is another matter that when it comes to political campaigns and alibis, PM Modi government says the law and order is state subject, and hence states are responsible for rising crime against women. They also love to blame the opposition ruled states, but the data shows that crime against women are on the rise in both the BJP and opposition ruled states, which needs to be addressed without playing politics, since women’s safety is far more important than attractive votes by falsely shifting blames to others.
Now come to the action taken against the culprits. Chargesheeting rate in states altogether was only 75.9 per cent in 2022 while in UTs it was even less at 71.9 per cent. Does it not mean that policing under Union Government is worse than under the state governments. Is it not then unethical when rulers in the Centre tell the electorate during election campaigns, as we have seen in Rajasthan recently, that women’s safety is threatened under opposition rule? At all India level chargesheeting rate was only 75.8 per cent.
It should also be noted that chargesheeting rate in Delhi was only 72.6 per cent where crime against women rate was highest in the Country. Delhi Police is of course under the BJP led Centre. As for the states are concerned chargesheeting rate in Mizoram was 98 per cent, Kerala 94.5, West Bengal 92.5, Nagaland 92.2, Andhra Pradesh 92.7, and Tamil Nadu 90.6 per cent. These were the top states for chargesheeting and barring NDA in Mizoram, no state was ruled by the BJP. It is therefore, RSS-BJP clan must drop their empty “Nari Vandan” slogan and their governments must act now for the real safety of women in the country. (IPA Service)
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