News Analysis India

Tag: crimes against women

  • Viewing women as manifestations of Goddess could help curb crime against them: Yogi Adityanath

    By PTI

    GORAKHPUR: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday urged people to view women as manifestations of the Goddess and said that this could help curb crime against them.

    The chief minister was speaking to reporters here after performing ‘Mahanavami pujan’ on the last day of the nine-day festival of Navratri.

    Earlier in the day, he performed ‘Kanya Pujan’ after washing the feet of young girls.

    He also served lunch to the girls and ‘Batuk’ (boys).

    Daughters and sisters should be accorded goddess-like sanctity, Adityanath said.

    If women are seen as manifestations of the Goddess, many incidents of crime happening against them can be prevented, he added.

    The chief minister also appealed to people to join hands for women’s education, health and security.

    He also praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for launching the ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ scheme, saying it paved the way for women empowerment.

    Adityanath also listed various state government schemes like the ‘Kanya Sumangal Yojana’ that seek to “empower women”.

    “The scheme ensures a monetary aid of Rs 15,000 in phases for the education of a girl child up to graduation,” he said.

    Under the ‘Mukhya Mantri Samuhik Vivah Yojana’, he said, the government supports families of poor women who can’t afford to pay for their weddings.

    Adityanath also extended Vijay Dashmi greetings to the people and said that the festival is a reminder to walk on the path of “truth, dharma (religion) and nyay (justice)”.

    “Even the biggest powers can be defeated by walking on the path of truth, justice and dharma and it certainly ensures victory,” he said.

    Adityanath will lead a traditional ‘Shobha Yatra’ on the occasion of Vijay Dashmi on Friday from the Gorakhnath temple.

  • Teacher sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping student in Rajasthan

    By PTI

    KOTA: A 56-year-old government school teacher has been sentenced to 20 years in prison by a POCSO court here for raping a Class 10 student of his school in 2019.

    POCSO court judge Hanuman Prasad also imposed a fine of Rs 47,000 on the convict Fariyad Ali on Wednesday, public prosecutor, Suresh Kumar Verma, said on Thursday.

    The teacher first molested the girl during a school trip to Ramgarh on January 17, 2019.

    After the trip, the teacher offered to drop the girl to her home and raped her on the way.

    Ali continued to molest and rape the minor survivor in school thereafter.

    The minor then lodged a case against the teacher at Itawa police station on March 13, 2019.

    Ali was booked under the POCSO Act and was arrested following the initial investigation in the matter.

    He has been in jail since then.

    Statements of at least 11 witnesses were recorded during the trial of the case.

  • Dombivli gang-rape case: Court extends police custody of 22 accused

    By PTI

    THANE: A local court on Wednesday extended the police custody of 22 accused persons arrested in the Dombivli gang-rape case till October 4.

    A total of 33 persons have been arrested or detained in connection with the alleged blackmailing and repeated gang-rape of a 15-year-old girl in Thane city.

    Two of the accused are minors, who have been detained.

    Twenty-two of the arrested accused were produced before the magistrate court in Kalyan after the expiry of their current police remand period.

    The court remanded them in further police custody till October 4.

    The 15-year-old victim was allegedly repeatedly gang-raped between January and September 2021.

    The crime came to light on September 22, when the victim lodged a complaint with the Manpada police station in Dombivli.

    The Thane police have set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), led by a woman officer, to probe the case.

    The girl was allegedly raped multiple times at different places in Thane district, including Dombivli, Badlapur, Murbad and Rabale, the police have said.

    Based on the girl’s complaint, the Manpada police on last Wednesday registered a case against all the 33 accused under IPC sections 376 (rape), 376 (n) (repeated rape), 376 (d) (gang-rape), 376 (3) (rape on a woman under sixteen years of age) and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

    Some of the accused blackmailed the minor girl by threatening to circulate her pictures and video of sexual assault on her that was recorded by them on their mobile phones, she had told the police.

  • HC upholds life term to three men in Pune gang-rape case, slams trial court judge

    By PTI

    MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court has upheld an order of the Pune sessions court passed in 2011 convicting and sentencing three men to life imprisonment in a gang-rape case, but made critical comments against defence lawyers and the judge in the case.

    In an order passed on September 28, a bench of Justices Sadhana Jadhav and Sarang Kotwal, while upholding the conviction and life term, made some strong observations on the conduct of defence lawyers and the judge in the case, particularly during the cross-examination of the victim.

    The HC said in the present case, the sessions judge “failed in his duty” to protect the dignity of the victim, an MBA graduate who was gang-raped in the Hinjewadi area of Pune.

    The HC noted that the lawyers defending the accused persons had tried to suggest, among other things, that the victim had consumed alcohol and that she had had consensual sex with the accused.

    The high court questioned the silence of the prosecution during such cross-examination.

    It further remarked that the sessions judge, who heard the case, should not have remained passive and should have intervened when the lawyers subjected the victim, the primary witness in the case, to improper cross-examination.

    “As far as the main incident is concerned, some suggestions were given on behalf of accused No.1 which show that the defence was trying to develop a theory of consensual sex,” the bench said.

    “Once she had denied suggestion of consensual sex, further suggestions were put to her regarding graphic details of the act. These further suggestions were wholly unnecessary,” it observed.

    The HC said such line of questioning could not be considered a “proper cross examination.”

    “We strongly disapprove all these suggestions put to the witness. We are more pained because of the passive approach adopted by the learned Judge in allowing these questions,” the HC said.

    “These suggestions crossed all lines of basic dignity. Under the garb of giving suggestions, graphic details of the act were put to the witness. This was wholly unwarranted.”

    “The learned Judge has recorded that at that stage the witness was sobbing. The learned Judge should have intervened and stopped this line of cross-examination,” it said.

    The HC said all courts are duty-bound to forbid any questions that might be offensive or meant to insult someone.

    It further said that in the present case, the sessions judge failed to inform the woman that she must not feel compelled to answer the unwarranted questions.

    The bench, however, said that while the cross examination was questionable, there did not exist any infirmity in the session court’s order convicting and sentencing the three accused persons to life imprisonment.

    The HC said it did not find any reason to interfere with the Pune court’s order and thus upheld the life terms awarded to the accused – Subhash Hiralal Bhosale, Ganesh Uttam Kambale and Ranjit Shahaji Gade.

    The victim was gang-raped by the accused near Information Technology Park at Mankar Chowk in Wakad on the outskirts of Pune on April 1, 2010, after she accepted a lift in their car.

    The incident had highlighted the lack of security for women working in the Hinjewadi area, where several IT companies are located.

  • Two girls taken hostage, gang-raped in UP cyber cafe by four men

    By PTI

    KANNAUJ (Uttar Pradesh): Two girls were allegedly held hostage and gang-raped in a cyber cafe here when they had gone to get some documents photocopied, police said on Monday.

    Four men took hostage of the two girl students at the cafe on September 13 and one of the accused also recorded the act, police said.

    The accused also extorted Rs 10,000 from the girls, threatening to circulate the video.

    Superintendent of Police Prashant Verma said a case was registered at Sadar Kotwali on Sunday against six people, including a woman, based on the complaint of one of the girls.

    The 17-year-old student in her complaint said she had gone to the cyber cafe along with her friend at noon on September 13 when four people, who were already present there, raped them.

    One of the accused also made a video of the act and handed it over to his brother-in-law who extorted Rs 10,000 by threatening to make it viral, police said.

    The girl said she and her friend stole money from their houses to give it to the accused, police said. It was the missing money which alerted their family members after which the incident came to light, they said.

    The girls have been sent to the district hospital for medical examination.

    Police are raiding all possible places, the SP said, adding in the initial investigation, the police have found signs of prostitution from the cafe.

    The victim had said that after the incident, the wife of one of the accused made her phone calls pressurising her into prostitution and some neighbours have also spoken about presence of young girls there, he added.

    The SP said efforts are on to nab the accused.

  • Ward boy held for molesting minor girls in Goan hospital lift 

    By PTI

    PANAJI: A ward boy of a government-run hospital in Goa was arrested on Sunday for allegedly molesting two minor siblings in a lift of the medical facility, a police official said.

    The incident took place between September 23 and 25 when the two sisters, aged 13 and 14, were frequently visiting the North Goa District Hospital in Mapusa town, around 10 km from here, where their mother was admitted, he said.

    “The ward boy used to follow them in the lift and allegedly molested them over the last couple of days,” the official said, quoting a complaint filed by family members of the victims.

    Based on the complaint, the 47-year-old accused was arrested and a case was registered against him under various Indian Penal Code Sections, including 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, he said.

    Besides, the police have also registered a case against a Mapusa-based doctor for allegedly molesting a woman patient in his clinic on September 22, the official said.

    In her police complaint, the woman alleged that the doctor behaved inappropriately with her during her checkup, he said.

    The doctor has moved a local court seeking anticipatory bail in the case, he added.

  • Woman constable gang-raped in MP’s Neemuch; five booked, two held

    By PTI

    NEEMUCH: A 30-year-old woman police constable was allegedly gang-raped by three men, who shot a video of the act and threatened her in Madhya Pradesh’s Neemuch district, an official said on Saturday.

    While the incident took place earlier this month, the constable lodged a complaint on September 13, following which a probe was conducted and a case was registered this week against five persons, including the mother of the main accused, the official said.

    The police have arrested the main accused and his mother in connection with the crime, said Anuradha Girwal, in-charge of the women police station.

    ​ALSO READ | 16-year-old Dalit girl abducted, raped in UP’s Fatehpur

    “The accused had befriended the victim on Facebook and had been interacting with her on WhatsApp since April. He invited the victim to his younger brother’s birthday party, where she was raped by three men,” Girwal said.

    The complainant has alleged that she was raped by the main accused, his brother and another man at the party, the official said, adding that accused also allegedly shot a video of the act.

    The victim has also claimed that the main accused’s mother threatened her and a relative of the accused also threatened to kill her and tried to extort money from her, she said.

    The victim, who was earlier posted in Neemuch, is currently working in Indore district, the official said, adding that further probe is underway.

  • 16-year-old Dalit girl abducted, raped in UP’s Fatehpur

    By PTI

    FATEHPUR: A 16-year-old Dalit girl was allegedly abducted and raped in the Jehanabad area here, police said on Saturday.

    The family of the girl filed a complaint with the police alleging that when she was sleeping in a shed outside her house on Thursday night, a 22-year-old man came and took her to his house and raped her, they said.

    The father of the girl, along with some villagers, rescued the girl on Friday morning from the man’s premises and informed police of the incident, Jehanabad Police Station SHO Keshavdas Verma said.

    ​ALSO READ | Marriage between victim, accused not grounds for quashing case when magnitude of rape is grave: Kerala HC

    Police booked the accused under charges of rape and threatening to kill, and also under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the SC/ST Act, Verma said.

    The victim was sent to a hospital for medical examination, he said.

    The accused is absconding and efforts are on to arrest him, he said.

  • Self-styled godman held for beating up woman in Maharashtra’s Palghar

    By PTI

    PALGHAR: The police have arrested a self-styled godman for allegedly beating up a 30-year-old woman on the pretext of freeing her from the possession of evil spirits in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, an official said on Tuesday.

    A case has been registered under relevant sections of the Maharashtra Prevention and Eradication of Human Sacrifice and Other Inhuman, Evil and Aghori Practices and Black Magic Act, 2013, at Nalla Sopara police station of Vasai, the official said.

    According to the complainant, she had approached the accused Hemraj Ambalal Nagda (66) of Bhiravnath Temple in Adivasi Pada, citing her poor health, he said.

    Nagda claimed that the woman had been possessed by some evil spirits and he needed to do some rituals to get rid of them, the official said.

    The accused allegedly caught hold of the victim by her hair and beat her up, and when the beatings became unbearable and her condition worsened, she approached the police, he said.

    An offence was registered, following which the accused was arrested on Sunday, the official added.

  • Crimes against women, children drop in 2020; disobedience cases go up drastically: NCRB

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: The Coronavirus pandemic and subsequent lockdown resulted in a drop in traditional crimes like theft, robbery, and assault on women and children in 2020, but there was a drastic jump in disobedience to government orders, primarily arising due to violations of COVID-19 norms, official data showed.

    According to the latest report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) on ‘Crime in India – 2020’, a total of 66,01,285 cognisable crimes comprising 42,54,356 Indian Penal Code (IPC) crimes and 23,46,929 Special and Local Laws (SLL) crimes were registered in 2020.

    It shows an increase of 14,45,127 (28 per cent) in registration of cases over 2019 (51,56,158 cases), while the crime rate registered per lakh population increased from 385.5 in 2019 to 487.8 in 2020.

    During 2020, registration of cases under IPC increased by 31.9 per cent whereas SLL crimes rose by 21.6 per cent over 2019.

    Percentage share of IPC cases was 64.4 per cent while that of SLL cases was 35.6 per cent of total cognisable crimes during 2020.

    Major increase was seen in the cases registered under disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant from 29,469 cases in 2019 to 6,12,179 cases in 2020 and under ‘other IPC crimes’ from 2,52,268 cases in 2019 to 10,62,399 cases in 2020, the report said.

    Similarly, under SLL category, more cases were registered under ‘other state local acts’ — from 89,553 in 2019 to 4,14,589 in 2020.

    These together have resulted in 16,43,690 more cases registered in 2020 as compared to 2019.

    “These cases are primarily those arising out of violations of Covid norms. Effectively therefore, there is a decrease in registration of traditional crime by about two lakh cases,” it said.

    During 2020, a total of 55,84,135 IPC cases (13,27,167 cases pending from previous year, 42,54,356 reported during the year and 2,612 cases re-opened for investigation) were under investigation, of which 34,47,285 cases were disposed of by police including 26,11,925 cases which were charge-sheeted, resulting in the charge-sheeting rate of 75.8 per cent.

    The country remained under complete lockdown from March 25 to May 31, 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic (first wave), during which movement in public space was very limited.

    The cases registered under crimes against women, children, and senior citizens, theft, burglary, robbery and dacoity declined, whereas Covid-related enforcement resulted in an increase of cases registered under ‘disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant (Sec.

    188 IPC)’, under ‘other IPC crimes’ and under ‘other state local acts’, it said.

    A total of 10,47,216 cases of offences affecting the human body were registered which accounted for 24.6 per cent of the total IPC crimes during 2020, of which hurt (5,78,641 cases) accounted for the maximum cases — 55.3 per cent — followed by cases of causing death by negligence (1,26,779 or 12.1 per cent) and cases of assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty (85,392 or 8.2 per cent).

    The cases registered under offences against human body depict a marginal decrease of 0.5 per cent in 2020 over 2019 (10,52,016 cases) and the crime rate has declined from 78.6 in 2019 to 77.4 in 2020.

    A total of 29,193 cases of murder were registered during 2020, showing a marginal increase of 1 per cent over 2019 (28,915 cases) with ‘disputes’ (10,404 cases) being the motive in the maximum cases followed by ‘personal vendetta or enmity’ (4,034 cases) and ‘gain’ (1,876 cases).

    A total of 84,805 cases of kidnapping and abduction were registered during 2020, showing a decrease of 19.3 per cent over 2019 (1,05,036 cases).

    A total of 88,590 people (14,869 males and 73,721 females) were reported kidnapped or abducted during 2020, of which 56,591 (8,715 males and 47,876 females) victims were children and 31,999 (6,154 males and 25,845 females) were adult.

    During 2020, a total of 91,739 kidnapped or abducted people (22,872 males and 68,867 females) were rescued, of which 91,458 people were rescued alive and 281 found dead.

    A total of 3,71,503 cases of crime against women were registered during 2020, showing a decline of 8.3 per cent over 2019 (4,05,326 cases).

    Majority of crimes against women under IPC were registered under ‘cruelty by husband or his relatives’ (30 per cent) followed by ‘assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty’ (23 per cent), ‘kidnapping and abduction of women’ (16.8 per cent) and ‘rape’ (7.5 per cent).

    A total of 1,28,531 cases of crime against children were registered during 2020, showing a decrease of 13.2 per cent over 2019 (1,48,090 cases).

    In percentage terms, major crime heads under ‘crime against children’ during 2020 were kidnapping and abduction (42.6 per cent) and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (38.8 per cent) including child rape.

    A total of 29,768 cases were registered against juveniles during 2020, depicting a decrease of 7.8 per cent over 2019 (32,269 cases).

    The crime rate also depicts a decrease from 7.2 in 2019 to 6.7 in 2020.

    A total of 35,352 juveniles were apprehended in 29,768 cases, of which 31,618 juveniles were apprehended under cases of IPC and 3,734 under cases of SLL during 2020.