How to deal with violence against women
The rape and murder of a young woman in Hyderabad triggered anger, shock and outrage of a nature perhaps last seen following the Nirbhaya assault in 2012. After that incident, the then UPA government constituted the Verma Committee to look into ways to deal with violence against women. It made several progressive recommendations, only some of which were adopted. For instance, the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act of 2013 broadened the definition of rape. Since then, the legislature has sought to address sexual violence by “strengthening” laws.
After the Hyderabad incident, politicians and the public seem to have discovered the limits to that approach. The laws are broad and strong—the death penalty has been on the table for a while. Some lawmakers suggested extra-judicial “solutions” like lynching. The Hyderabad police provided one such “solution”, killing all four accused in an encounter. Meanwhile, the Andhra government passed a law stipulating rape cases would be investigated, tried and decided in 21 days. For those who have spent years working with sexual assault survivors, some of these are knee-jerk measures removed from reality.
Cases can be probed and tried in 21 days only if there is a massive infusion of funds alongside recruitment and training of personnel ranging from police to forensic scientists to prosecutors and magistrates. Meanwhile, important interventions that would make it easier for survivors to report crimes and pursue the cases are ignored. This begins with sensitising police and medical personnel, the first points of contact for a survivor.
This includes how to interpret the law and invoke relevant sections of it. Next, the trial itself must be completed in a respectful environment for which prosecutors and judges must be trained. Most importantly, support systems, including speedy release of compensation, must be made available to survivors along with protection whenever needed to ensure they are able to heal and move on from the trauma. Essentially, people need to forget vengeance for a moment and work towards realising an environment in which women and children feel empowered to speak up.