: Police As Accomplice #IndiaNEWS #Editorial Ineffective enforcement of law in rising crimes against women There is a countrywide concern over the rising number of crimes against women. The year

Police As Accomplice #IndiaNEWS #Editorial
Ineffective enforcement of law in rising crimes against women

There is a countrywide concern over the rising number of crimes against women. The year between 2018 and 2019, for which recorded data is available, the country witnessed a seven per cent increase in the crimes against women. The Centre’s reminder last week to the state and Union Territory governments to take time-bound action in cases of crimes against women is a response to the growing public concern. There is criticism of the police in preventing crimes against women. The police inaction was visible in the gangrape of a 20-year old woman from Hathras in Uttar Pradesh last month. In the advisory issued on Saturday, the Home Ministry has directed the police in states and UTs to use the three sections of the Code of Criminal Procedure that deal with “compulsory registration of FIR???, completion of investigation (in rape cases) within 60 days and mandatory medical examination to be conducted with the individual’s consent by a qualified doctor within 24 hours of receipt of information of such a crime. The MHA has also directed governments to issue instructions to all concerned to ensure strict compliance with the provisions and to monitor the cases on ITSSO (an online portal) to ensure suitable follow-up action. Aware that “failure of the police to adhere to these mandatory requirements may not augur well for the delivery of criminal justice in the country, especially in context of women safety??? the Centre has warned of “stringent action??? against those not following the rules.

Though such directives are issued every now and then, especially when heinous crimes against women draw wide media attention, the state governments choose not to follow them. The police forces across the country were sensitized after the Nirbhaya tragedy, which is still fresh in the minds of many people. However, the UP police forgot the guidelines but were callous and even allegedly complicit in handling the case of the Hathras Dalit woman. The police sent collected the swab for testing the incidence of rape 11 days after the crime was committed, as a result of which crucial evidence was lost.

The existing laws, including the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, if applied, can help the victims get justice. The country has stringent laws to deal with crimes against women; the police have to follow them properly. An order of the Supreme Court says that a statement, when offered as a dying declaration and satisfies all the requirements of judicial scrutiny, cannot be discarded merely because it has not been recorded by a magistrate or that the police officer did not obtain attestation by any person present at the time of making the statement.

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