Rape has become a major problem in India today because our laws don’t act as a deterrent which often leaves the culprits go unpunished. Some rapists even escape with a light punishment or no reprimand at all, as they enjoy political clout. Just as a terrorist has no religion and keep on terrorising people, so also a rapist has no religion and keep on raping women and young girls even below the age of 5.
Women and young girls are sometimes scared to travel alone in public transport and night travel is also risky. The government must recruit better qualified and trained personnel to keep a strict vigil in sensitive and isolated areas, as well as in local trains to induce caution and fear in the minds of criminals. This preventative mode could result in a reduction in the number of crimes taking place and might even make people respect the laws of the country. The strictest possible punishment with no provision for exemption should also be meted out without any consideration for juveniles, as they are the ones committing most of the crimes. None of the criminals should be released on bail. This will teach other criminals not to commit such gruesome acts of crimes in future.
An increasing number of women are facing attacks in trains, colleges, secluded places, cinema halls, bus stands, etc. There is no one to control the crimes against women and in most cases there are eye-witnesses but the crime takes place nonetheless. We find the cine world in India giving importance to rape scenes and this, according to me, is one of the reasons for atrocities against women in the real world.
To reduce the attacks on women in suburban trains, the women’s compartment should be separated from the men’s section by a strong mesh that enables the men to be alert to any unsolicited entry or to any untoward incident in the women’s compartment. In this way, the men could also respond to any untoward incident eventuality. Also, if these compartments are positioned at the middle of the train, it might make it more difficult for the offenders to escape.
Each time the media reports a rape case, the civil society reacts with anger and outrage, which unfortunately dies down after some time. People forget about the incident until the occurrence of another rape. The government must amend criminal laws to secure the lives of women.
(This is the first part of the article and the remaining part will continue tomorrow.)
Jubel D’Cruz
(The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.)
