Tag: #violenceagainstwomen

Rising cases of Domestic Violence during the lockdown in West Bengal

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Abstract – The article will make the readers conscious of the heinous act, i.e., the domestic violence in India. The article talks about the rising cases of domestic violence during the lockdown in West Bengal and the role of the West Bengal Women’s Commission in curbing such menace.

INTRODUCTION

In India, domestic violence against women is dominantly prevalent, that is tried to conceal. We live in a patriarchal society where one in every three women is subject to domestic violence. According to a research, 45 percent of women in India are subjected to violence by their spouses. Domestic abuse is a largely unseen crime that occurs mostly behind closed doors.

During the lockdown, West Bengal saw an increase in domestic violence cases. Many women were subjected to domestic violence and physical abuse. Women had previously faced physical assaults, but the lockdown had exacerbated and worsened the situation.

Since the imposition of lockdown, more than seventy domestic violence cases have been reported to the commission. The number of complaints received during this period was higher than in the months preceding the lockdown.

Analysis

According to the state women’s commission, domestic violence cases in West Bengal have increased during the lockdown. Since the lockdown was imposed, the commission has witnessed a surge in reports of domestic violence. The complaints came from all over the state, in both rural and urban areas, including Kolkata.

National and International laws

Protection of Women against Domestic Violence Act 2005

 This Act was promulgated to protect women against physical, sexual, and emotional abuses, all of which are widely specified under the Act. The Act not only talks about the protection of married women, but also women who are in live-in relationships with men. It is a must that woman should be free from all forms of violence. 

Section 498 of IPC

“Whoever takes or entices away from any woman who is and whom he knows or has reason to believe is the wife of another man, from that man, or any person caring for her on behalf of that man, with the intent that she may have illicit intercourse with any person, or conceals or detains any such woman with that intent, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a period which may extend to two years, or with fine, or with both.”

Dowry prohibition Act, 1961

 Anyone who provides, accepts or even asks dowry can be imprisoned for a half-year (i.e., six months) or fined up to Five Thousand Rupees under this rule.

CEDAW

CEDAW adopts a three-dimensional and practical approach based on the concept of substantive equality or gender equality. This goes beyond equal opportunity and legal language to consider the current state of women’s lives as the actual litmus test for whether or not equality has been attained.

The media still does not play an influential role in minimizing domestic violence against women. They fail to cover the incidents and spread those to the mass, taking place every day in the marginalized communities. Because the media serves as society’s eyes, ears, and limbs, it has the potential to significantly reduce violence against women.

ROLE OF MEDIA IN COVERING THESE ISSUES

The role of media should be to expose the shades of malice and spread awareness about the rights of the women. The media needs to be aware of the violence directed against women. Indeed, many women have said that the media’s coverage of an assault or other form of brutality resembled a second attack due to the insensitivity with which they used images, published names, and other invasions of privacy.

The media’s involvement in the issues of violence against women is essential both in terms of how it covers the matter and in terms of how it may be utilized to assist activists and governments in raising awareness and implementing necessary programme.

In general, the media lacks in instilling an extensive awareness of domestic violence in the public. As a result, many scholars believe that media portrayals of domestic violence are part of a hegemonic patriarchal worldview that obscures both the issue of domestic violence and the underlying social processes that generate it.

Case Laws

S.R Batra and Anr v. Smt. Taruna Batra

 Referring to Sec17(1), 4Sec2(S) Of Domestic Violence Act, the Supreme Court held that:

Only the wife has the right to live in a joint household.

A house owned by a husband, a house rented by a husband, or a house that belongs to a husband’s joint family is considered a shared home.

The judgement further noted that, under section 19(1)(f) of the act, the claim for alternative accommodation may only be raised against the spouse and not against his in-laws or other relatives.

As a result of the facts of the case, it was determined that the wife could not claim a right of residency in the property belonging to her mother-in-law.

Dr Velusamy v.  Patchaiammal

The court noted that the Act’s definition of “domestic relationship” in section 5 sec 2(f) includes not just marriage but also a relation “like marriage” in this case.

Because the term “relationship like marriage” isn’t defined in the Act, the court clarified its meaning. According to the court, not all living relationships qualify as “relationships like marriage,” which must meet the following criteria. In addition, the parties must have lived together in a “shared household.”

The couple must exhibit themselves as husband and wife to the rest of society. To marry, they must be of legal age. To engage in lawful marriage, they must meet all other requirements, including being unmarried.

Conclusion

The government must develop a comprehensive strategy and allocate sufficient funds to provide support services to survivors, ensure the application of domestic violence laws, and conduct public awareness campaigns emphasizing that domestic violence is a crime and that the state will take strict action against it. The judicial system must become more active and effective in bringing justice to victims and sufferers.

This blog is written by Shruti Bose, studying at Christ (Deemed to be University), Lavasa

Edited by Deeksha Arora.

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Prolonged Delay in Rape Trial

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The present article has been written by Shrey Hasija, a first-year student of Vivekananda Institute of Professional Studies, GGSIPU.

Introduction 

In a society like India where cultural expectations and attitudes toward society determine the type of relations and behavior with people. An incident of rape in that type of society, where a victim looked like some damaged goods instead of giving sympathy to him. Also, the family of victims tends to reject victims due to social pressure. Also reporting this type of crime is considered a daring act on part of both family and victim due to prosecution place the victim has to face embarrassing and uncomfortable line of questioning, which is why the cases of rape are most under-reported crimes in India. A murderer destroys the physical being of a person but rape destroys or deteriorates the mental being of a person and in some extreme cases makes the person insane. Increasing cases of rape and the extreme condition of rape calls for the speedy delivery of justice to the victims and their families, who are suffering from the wrongdoing of someone else who is roaming freely without being punished.

Also, there is a famous saying that ‘justice delayed is justice denied ‘by William Goldstone which means that if timely justice is not given to suffering one then it will lead to injustice. In the case of prolonged delay in the rape trial, there is a classic example which I think everyone in India knows about is Nirbhaya’s Case in which a young girl was gang-raped on a running bus in Delhi, So brutally that she lost her life. Despite that, the case took 7 painful years for justice to be served. The time has come to adopt speedy machinery for providing speedy justice to a rape victim and providing the victim new to live with dignity.

Why does it take so much time to provide justice to the victims?

The unnecessary and undue delay in the rape cases has become a barrier in giving justice to the victim. So delays only increase the pain and suffering of the victim and allows the accused to travel freely. Very large no cases are pending in our courts which make the people doubt the judicial system of India. It is very important to trace and resolve the barriers so that the remaining trust should be preserved.

There are some major reasons for prolonged investigation and trial:-

  1. Insufficient staff – sometimes shortage of police personnel, takes a very long time to investigate. also, sometimes police officers found not to file an FIR, to avoid the overload of work
  2.  Lack of Training: The police officers are not properly trained for conducting the investigation process particularly in Rape cases. Further, they are not well equipped with necessary instruments such as forensic lab, cyber cell, and assisting officers which makes the investigation slow and ineffective.
  3.  Political Influence and Corruption: Sometimes it is observed that due to political influence or pressure by powerful persons, police officers resist investigating properly. Also, corruption among police officers is often the reason behind the delay in investigation and trial.
  4. Lack of Supervision and Inspection: There is a lack of supervision in the functioning of the police mechanism by the senior officers on their subordinates. Proper inspections are not done on the registration or filing of FIR and the investigation process. 
  5. Lack of Separate Investigation wing/body: It is observed that various duties are assigned to the police officers which makes it impracticable for them to pay proper and exclusive attention to the investigation of Rape cases. A separate investigation branch must be established which will be solely involved in the investigation of rape cases.
  6.  Lack of Cooperation by the public: Often it is complained by the police officers that there is a lack of cooperation by the public. Many times the eyewitnesses evade from giving evidence in the court and also from giving vital information to the police which in turn leads to delayed trial.
  7.  Overburdened Trial Courts: The Trial Courts are overburdened with many new and pending cases which makes it difficult to dispose of the cases quickly
  8. Delay Service of warrants/Summons: Sometimes the accused or the witnesses are not summoned properly on proper time due to which their production and examination in the Court are delayed. It is found that effective service and execution of warrants by the police is not done properly which delays the whole trial process.
  9. Delay in Submission of experts reports: Sadly, there is a significant lack of Cyber Cells and Forensic labs in many police departments of the state due to which essential tests cannot be conducted by the experts which also leads to nonsubmission of the report on time. 
  10. Adjournment of Cases: Excessive adjournment of cases in the trial court is one of the major causes of delay in disposing of the Rape cases. Sometimes the opposite party deliberately seeks adjournment which adds difficulties to the quick disposal of Rape cases.  

CONCLUSION 

Rape is the most pathetic crime committed against women. It does not only cause physical mutilation but also the mental distress that stays with her till the end of her life. The court cannot bring back what she has lost but necessary efforts could be made to secure convenient, fastest, and fair justice. Many provisions emphasize the concept of speedy trial and recognize it as a matter of right of the innocent victim. Moreover, speedy trial acts as an ointment and saves them from being re-victimized from the delayed and prolonged trials. Over the decade’s many suggestions and recommendations have been given by various committees regarding the speedy administration of justice. It is pertinent to understand that justice cannot be served to the victim by making legislations and recommendations; rather it can only be served by the strict implementation. For proper and effective implementation of laws, the roles of every block of society such as non-governmental organizations, media, police officers, medical officers, lawyers, and the judicial fraternity are of utmost importance. Strong efforts must be made to spread awareness and education among the Rape Victims about their rights so that they can avail themselves of them and get the justice that they truly deserve. In the end, the author would like to conclude by saying that delay in delivering justice is denying justice to the innocent victim because the longer they are made to fight for their rights and suffer the hardship, the longer will be the ill effects on their minds and emotions. Therefore it is necessary to provide easier and faster justice to the Rape Victims so that they can live a peaceful life and the monsters that are hiding under the cover of human beings can learn a lesson and never even think of raping a girl. By ensuring speedy justice to the Rape Victim the objective of “Rape Free India” can be achieved.

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Caste Based Violence Against Women

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This article is written by Mudit Jain, a law student at Indore Institute of Law. This article gives an overview of the caste-based violence against women and how they are suffering from it and how our prestigious Courts are recognizing them.

Introduction

The tragedy of a 19-year-old Dalit lady being gang-raped in Hathras in 2020 is still vivid in our thoughts. Following the Hathras incident, the Supreme Court issued a fresh decision in Patan Jamal Vali v. State of Andhra Pradesh addressing the intersectionality of caste, gender, and handicap. Activists, academics, and attorneys contended that the sexual violence was committed because of the woman’s gender and caste and that the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (PoA Act) should be invoked.

Examples of Courts Setting Aside the PoA Act

Courts have virtually always overturned convictions under the PoA Act in situations of sexual abuse against Dalit and Adivasi women.

  • In Khuman Singh v. State of Madhya Pradesh (2019), a murder case, the court concluded that while the deceased’s membership in the SC group was not challenged, there was no evidence to indicate that the offence was committed solely on that basis; conviction under the PoA Act was overturned.
  • In Asharfi v. State of Uttar Pradesh (2017), the court determined that the facts and documents on record did not establish that the appellant committed rape because the victim was a member of the SC community.
  • In Ramdas and Others v. State of Maharashtra (2006), a case where a Dalit child girl was raped, the Supreme Court overturned the conviction under the PoA Act, holding that the fact that the victim was a lady from an SC group did not entitle her to the PoA Act.
  • In Dinesh Alias Buddha v. State of Rajasthan (2006), the Supreme Court stated, “It is not the prosecution’s argument that the rape was performed on the victim because she was a member of the Scheduled Caste.”

Several precedents that insist on an unreasonable burden of proof. This matter should be sent to a broader bench for a different viewpoint.

SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989

The PoA Act was intended to combat atrocities committed against members of the SC and ST groups, and it was updated in 2015 to particularly recognize new crimes committed against Dalit and Adivasi women, such as sexual assault, sexual harassment, and Devadasi devotion.

Section 3(2)(v) states that if any person not being an SC/ST member commits an offence under the IPC punishable with imprisonment of 10 years or more shall be punished with life imprisonment and a fine if he commits an offence against a person because he is a member of the SC/ST community.

In 2015, the term “on the ground that such person is a member of SC/ST” was changed to “knowing that such person is a member of SC/ST.”

The Intersectional Approach Will Address the Discrimination

In a first, the Supreme Court expanded on the necessity for an intersectional approach to account for the victim’s many marginalization. The intersectional discrimination requires an understanding of how several forces of oppression worked together to generate a distinct experience of subordination for the blind Dalit lady. The court also issued directives to teach judges, police officers, and prosecutors to be more sensitive in such instances, emphasizing the need of making the criminal justice system more receptive to women with disabilities who have been sexually assaulted.

Burden of Proof a Reason to Expose Vulnerable Women to Sexual Violence

In all of the above-mentioned decisions, the court determined that there was insufficient evidence to prove that the accused committed sexual assault because the victim was a member of the SC/ST group. The only proof that may be shown is that the victim belonged to an SC/ST group and that the accused was aware of this. When a woman is handicapped and from a marginalized caste, she experiences prejudice because of her gender, caste/tribe, and handicap, all of which makes her vulnerable to sexual abuse.

Recognition to Intersectional Discrimination by the Court

The victim of sexual assault in Patan Jamal Vali v. State of Andhra Pradesh was a blind 22-year-old Dalit woman. The accused was convicted of rape under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 3(2)(v) of the PoA Act by the trial court and the High Court, and sentenced to life imprisonment.

In this decision, the Supreme Court upheld the conviction and penalty for rape under the IPC but overturned the conviction under the PoA Act.

On the one hand, this decision is a tremendous step forward since the court took advantage of the chance to recognize intersectional discrimination against women based on their gender, caste, and handicap.

However, by overturning the conviction under the PoA Act, it follows in the footsteps of many other earlier Supreme Court decisions.

Suggestions to Reduce the Issue

  • Enhanced police accountability and efficient victim and witness protection.
  • Addressing impunity for sexual assault perpetrators, particularly those from powerful castes.
  • Taking attempts to minimize community engagement in situations of sexual abuse, such as prohibiting the use of khap panchayats.
  • Combating intersectional types of prejudice experienced by Dalit women and girls while interacting with law enforcement agencies
  • Improved funding and usage of current money for initiatives preventing and responding to sexual assault.

Conclusion

According to the latest Parliamentary Standing Committee Report on Atrocities and Crimes Against Women and Children, a “high acquittal rate stimulates and enhances the confidence of dominant and strong societies in continuing perpetration.” This decision was a wasted chance for the court to utilize intersectionality to sustain the conviction under the PoA Act or, if necessary, refer the case to a bigger bench.

We must stop hiding behind smokescreens of evidence’s hyper-technicality and recognize caste-based violence against women when it is there in front of us. Otherwise, our anti-caste legislation would be made ineffective. If intersectionality theory had been relevant in this case, it should have inspired an interpretation of the PoA Act that reflects the lived realities of women who have experienced sexual abuse.

The government should focus on strategy implementation. A comprehensive investigation and a time trial are essential for victims from the SC/ST category. This will help to increase confidence among the society’s less fortunate members.

REFERENCES:

  • https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/recognising-caste-based-violence-against-women/article34692073.ece
  • https://www.theweek.in/leisure/society/2020/10/09/why-there-is-rampant-caste-based-violence-against-women-in-up.html
  • https://www.insightsonindia.com/2021/06/02/insights-into-editorial-recognising-caste-based-violence-against-women/
  • http://www.dalits.nl/pdf/HRC-11_briefing_note_-_Violence_against_Dalit_Women.pdf
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-54418513

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