THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala Law Reforms Commission has recommended to the government to enact legislation against sorcery and black magic. A stringent law to check moral-policing incidents has also been recommended. In its latest report submitted to Law Minister P Rajeeve, the commission has taken note of the disturbing trends in society and the ineffectiveness of existing laws to deal with issues such as sorcery and moral policing.
Of the several moral-policing incidents reported in the state recently, some saw victims either taking their own lives or getting killed. While murder cases related to moral policing invite strong charges under IPC, the act of beating up persons and humiliating them often attract minor charges, like house trespass and clash between two groups. This allows attackers to secure bail easily and escape with minor punishments.
Hence, the commission has suggested a new legislation that will effectively address incidents of moral policing on grounds of religion, caste or gender and mob violence. The bill to prevent evil practices such as sorcery and black magic was mooted by the commission in 2019, on the lines of the anti-superstition and black magic act passed in Maharashtra and Karnataka.
Bill to protect those who help accident victims
The draft bill suggests that the government is required to organise continuous awareness programmes against superstitious practices as such beliefs are still deep-rooted in a major section of society. Another bill mooted by the commission is meant to provide legal protection to those who help accident victims during golden hours.
The commission noted that stigma in attending to accident cases is still high in society and the majority of people are reluctant to offer help because of the legal tangles that might entrap them afterwards. Another bill is for regulating registration and activities of residents’ associations and apartment owners’ associations.
A bill to protect the rights of domestic help, and to fix their minimum wages and improve their working conditions has also been mooted. The report includes 12 bills for enacting the new legislation, one for repealing obsolete laws, four each law amendment and rule amendment bills. Commission vice-chairman K Sasidharan Nair and Law Secretary Hari V Nair submitted the report to the minister.
Other bills mooted
To provide legal protection to those who help accident victims during golden hours
To regulate registration and activities of residents’ associations and apartment owners’ associations