Crimes against Women in India - An Embarrassing Concern

Credits – Jan Fischer

Aggression, violence, and crimes against women who comprise about 48 percent of the population are some of the most serious issues that we face. India is traditionally a male-dominated country where women have to face various forms of violence in society from ancient times. They are suppressed and subjugated by the men in this patriarchal society. They have been victims of humiliation, exploitation, and torture. Indian women are victims of violence in social, religious, and cultural environments. Women ought to face all types of cruelty given by Indian society be it domestic or physical, social, mental, or monetary. Violence against women in India will be clearly seen within the pages of history on an outsized scale. The condition of girls in earlier times was very pleasant compared to present times; however, with the change in time, there have been heaps of changes in the condition of girls.

Cases of murder, rape, molestation, sexual abuse, eve-teasing, etc. have been drastically increasing day by day. Cases of discrimination, harassment at workplaces, and domestic violence seem to be on the rise forever. And, if by any chance somebody dares to get their case registered in the court, the complainant is either forced to step down, withdraw the case, or in certain circumstances threatened to stay quiet using muscle or money power.

Violence against women has been exposed within the style of incidents of barbaric gang-rape, molestation within the workplace, and acid throwing. One of the examples of this is the Delhi gang-rape case on December 16, 2012. The gang-rape of a 23-year-old lady had dismayed the entire country. Many people chose to come down on the streets demanding changes on a large scale.

Despite a rise in society’s literacy rate, this downside has become serious and complex for Indian society. The main reason behind crime against women is men’s strength, weak laws, men’s dominance within the political structure, and inadequate schemes. This savagery towards women has profoundly affected their hearts and minds. It appears to me that regardless of whether the viciousness is totally disposed of from society, it may very well be hard to take out savagery by the voice of women.

Crimes against Women under the Indian Penal Code

The various violations against women occurring in the general public like assault, hijacking, abusive behavior at home, etc. and prescribed punishment for the transgressor and various provisions of Indian Penal Code,1860 courses of action with compensation to women who are setbacks of such wrongdoings in the solicitation to prevent such violations in the public arena. Crimes against women under the Indian Penal Code, 1860 are:

Rape (Sec. 376, 376A, 376B, 376C, 376D)
Kidnapping (Sec. 359, 360, 366)
Assault to outrage modesty (Sec. 354, 354B)
Domestic violence (Sec. 498A)
Sexual harassment (Sec. 354A)
Dowry deaths
Eve teasing (Sec. 509)
Chain snatching (Sec. 378)
Acid attack (Sec. 326A, 326B)
Stalking (Sec. 354D)
Women trafficking (Sec. 370, 370A, 372, 373)

Dowry as a crime against Women

In the pattern of bringing dowry practice up in our general public, it is certain that viciousness against women can never end. It has become an intricate issue, where there are numerous parts of viciousness. Dowry practice has decreased the status of minor young women in the general public. It is frequently seen that in the event that the share isn’t given at the hour of marriage, at that point the woman is given day by day assault, altering, and abuse; each day a huge number of young women are turning out to be survivors of this social beast.

Unfortunately, the dowry practice is still there in India despite the arrangement of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961. It says that: “If a person, after the start of this Act, gives or takes or abets the giving or taking of dowry, he is going to be culpable with detainment for a term which will not be under five years, and with fine which will not be under fifteen thousand rupees or the measure of the estimation of such share, whichever is more.”

Rape as a crime against Women

Rape, as an abomination is the most un-understandable wrongdoing found in humankind. It is more heinous than murder. At the point when you murder a woman, she is gone and she doesn’t encounter any embarrassment in the afterlife. Be that as it may, a rape casualty drives a daily existence of constant misery and mental distress. She is viewed as an outrank in her own family just as in the general public. She turns into the survivor of familial and social scorn and unsatisfactory in the general public. What number of guys might want to wed a rape casualty on their sweet will? A rape victim is at no fault for her rape.

Marital rape is one more unmistakable illustration of brutality against women. Marital rape is the nonconsensual sex carried on between a wedded couple. Spouses regularly force a lot themselves upon their wives without their consent. This prompts a lot of misuses and actual attack submitted upon the female body. Women trafficking and constrained prostitution are two different sorts of brutality to which Indian women are victims. Different types of viciousness submitted against women incorporate child marriage, domestic abuse, sex dealing, and kidnapping.

Laws in place to prevent Crimes against Women

There are some laws for protecting crimes against women in India as stated below:

Conclusion

Counteraction of wrongdoings against women should begin right off the bat throughout everyday life, by educating and working with boys and girls advancing deferential connections and sex balance. There should be more laws for protecting women as well as fast track courts against women. There should be training facilities for self-defense, martial arts, etc. And most importantly, there should be a capital punishment for heinous crimes like rape, acid attack, etc. Savagery against women is established in sexual orientation-based separation and accepted practices and sex generalizations that propagate such brutality. Women are so powerless in the Indian culture where numerous female goddesses are worshipped.

A social revolution is needed to root out this evil from Indian society and give respect and recognition to our women. There is an urgent need for judicial reforms and police reforms. The police dominated by men must do more to clear all obstacles in the path of survivors and women police strength should be increased. The Government needs to focus on safe public transport, city and street lighting, CCTV cameras, mapping the unsafe areas, and provision of increased police patrolling in such areas.

Capacity building and training programs to service providers to effectively handle such cases, better fast track courts and quick sentencing is the need of the hour. The death penalty for rape and murder is already there but the evidence suggests that such punishments have not led to a decrease in crimes and it is not just the extent and the gravity of punishments but also the certainty of a fair procedure that needs to be followed.

Awareness and sensitization of people are equally important in this regard to prevent such crimes in every country. Gender sensitization must be included right from the schools. There must be changes in the school and college syllabus to educate social values of equality and respect for women’s autonomy. There must be an ecosystem of care and empathy and the behavior of the justice system and the police needs to be changed so that the faith in the system remains alive.

Editor’s Note
Women all over the globe have been victims of various heinous crimes since time immemorial. This is true, particularly in the Indian context. This article highlights the various committed crimes against women, particularly in the Indian context. The author has enlisted various crimes that are punishable under the Indian Penal Code, 1860, particularly throwing light upon the crimes of dowry and rape.

Further, the author has also enlisted certain laws that are in place for the protection of women against numerous such crimes. The author concludes by saying that a lot of changes need to be made at various different levels in order to curb the crimes committed against women in India. Awareness, education, and sensitization among the general public in this regard are also of utmost importance.

Submitted by Vatsal Pareek, First Year Student at Manipal University, Jaipur.