Political Diary
New Delhi, 10 December 2019
Justice Executed
SHOWING A NEW ‘DISHA’
By Poonam I Kaushish
India
is at war with its betis. If
Nirbhaya, Kathua, Unnao, Muzzafarnagar etc weren’t gut wrenching, the latest
tale of savagery happened in Hyderabad 28 November where a 23-year
old veterinarian ‘Disha’ was raped and burnt, horrifying
the nation again. But in a stunning twist or call it righteousness the
four accused were shot dead in a police encounter. A triumphant Cyberabad
Police Commissioner said, “Law has done its duty,” and a delirious nation got
its justice.
Clearly,
while many felt instant justice powered by public support as correct, others voiced
concerns over extra-judicial executions as it underscored the failure of our
grievance redressal mechanism and justice delivery system, for which our
police, judiciary and lawmakers must share blame.
Raising a moot point: Was brutality the trigger point for the
public to say enough is enough, kill the culprits? True, we might have excellent
criminal laws, but what use are these when they cannot ensure a quick,
time-bound trial or punishment?
Think.
The rapists of Nirbhaya in December 2012 still await justice. While one is
roaming free after serving his three-year sentence in a reformation home, three
others mercy petitions are pending with the President. Seven years, no justice
is a telling comment on our collective failure to ensure that crimes are
addressed and criminals punished in time.
In
June 2017 a 17-year old girl was kidnapped and raped by ex-BJP MLA Sengar in
Unnao. In April 2018 Sengar was arrested and in July 2019 the rape victim was
seriously injured when a truck struck her car. The Supreme Court transferred the
case to a Delhi trial court where final arguments continue. While Sengar is in
jail his three accomplices are out on bail. Three years, the case drags on.
The
story of 8-year-old nomadic girl in J&K’s Kathua village 2018 runs on
parallel lines. She was raped and bludgeoned to death in a small village
temple. While three have been sentenced to life imprisonment three others have
been awarded five years in jail for destruction of evidence
Again,
in May several minor girls in a shelter home in Bihar's Muzaffarpur were sexually
and physically assaulted by ex-MLA Brajesh Thakur and accomplices. While ten of
eleven accused are in jail the case drags on in court with no end in sight. Another
Unnao rape victim whose trial was underway became a victim of acid attack and
died. The police reportedly is trying to shield the perpetrators.
Against
this background, any wonder outcomes will be extra-judicial solutions like what
the Telangana police did. Of course, the cops
were buoyed by the fact public opinion bayed for retribution and the joyous
reactions prove they emerged heroes.
Questionably,
are extra-judicial killings the only way forward when justice is delayed in
rape cases? Certainly, there are no easy answers
but that the Telangana police took the easy way to solve a crime is
indisputable. Even as we bemoan the violation of due process of law, we
need to remember that when justice fails, as in case after case, instant
justice will step in.
However,
if the purpose of criminal laws is to not merely punish the wrongdoer but also
ensure punishment serves as a deterrent for future crimes, then our judicial
system is a huge failure. It punishes at snail's pace, neither satisfying the
victim’s quest for justice nor serving as a deterrent for potential violators.
Appallingly, sexual abuse remains widespread despite tightening
of rape laws whereby four rapes happen every minute in India. Daily
newspapers scream
headlines of girls raped, women routinely stalked, assaulted and killed,
harassed by police or bullied into silence by family. And the country goes into collective maatam.
According
to the National Crimes Records Bureau, 39,000 sexual
assaults occur every year, five rapes occur every minute and one woman is
killed every hour. In a UN
survey India ranked 85 out of 121 countries unsafe for women. Shockingly, 6.26
rapes take place for every 10,000 women.
Last
year’s police records show rape registered a 9.2% rise over 2014 of which more
than half (54.7%) of the victims were between 18 and 30 with Delhi accounting
for over 17%. Abductions were up 19.4%, torture by 5.4%, molestation by 5.8%
and trafficking by an alarming 122%. There were over 470,556 molestation cases,
315,074 kidnappings, rape 243,051 and modesty outrage 104,151.
Undoubtedly,
toxic masculinity tells men it is okay even commendable to seize women who they
can’t otherwise have. Topped, by our regressive society which ensures that if
they cross limits there would find sympathisers and defenders who will pin the
blame on the woman.
Clearly,
in a society heavily loaded in favour of men, women and young girls live in an
increasingly unsafe environment wherein they are viewed as sex objects and
mince-meat for male lust camouflaged as human animals. Comply or reconcile to
battling it out at every level. Perhaps it has something to do with our
patriarchal lineage and misogynistic culture.
Worse,
implementation of laws meant to protect women, post Nirbhaya are patchy. In
2016 over 35,000 rape cases were reported but only 7,000 were convicted.
Tragically, women are on their own vis-a-vis
their safety. There is no law against sexual assault or harassment and only
vaginal penetration counts as rape. Horrifyingly, one Rajasthan hospital
continues the “two-finger” test (doctors insert fingers into the vagina) to
determine if a woman has been raped, despite the practice being banned in 2013.
Sic.
Those
who molest a woman are only booked for “insulting or outraging a woman’s
modesty” or “intruding upon her privacy”. The maximum punishment is a year's
imprisonment, a fine or both. Besides, though a 2015 law mandates victims be
paid Rs three lakhs as compensation just three of 50 rape survivors have got
it.
By completely ignoring the systemic
realities including police apathy towards rape survivors, poor investigation, a
judgmental criminal justice system which goes for harsher punishments as a
solution, our outrage seems superficial. Suggestive of us shying away from the
responsibility as a society for sexual violence against women.
Undeniably,
Telangana has shown the way and also served three purposes. One, it addressed
the public fury. Two, a clear message rang out to accused and convicted rapists
that they too could face a similar outcome from the police elsewhere. Three, it
serves as a deterrence for potential criminals who, bet on the long
process of law sparing them. Succinctly, even if the law spares them, the
police will not.
But
in a democracy, we cannot always take the law into our hands as this would
result in chaos and anarchy and put India on the slippery slope to a tin-pot
country status where upholders of law turn into violators.
The
time has come for the police to document rapes and the judiciary to fast-track
cases instead of lingering them for years. Women will truly be safe only when
there is a transformative change in the social mindset of society. Else the
extra-judicial processes will become a reality.
In
sum, in an environ where incidents of moral turpitude pervades across the
country, we need to seriously ponder for how long will women continue to be playthings
at the hands of voyeuristic animals in
the garb of men? A time to introspect: Balatkar
aur apradhikaran akhir kab tak? ----- INFA
(Copyright, India
News & Feature Alliance)
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