Regarding the sexual assault cases and the subsequent outrages in many states, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday voiced concern over how efforts were being made to hide the crime rather than provide justice.
“After West Bengal, UP, Bihar, the shameful crimes against daughters in Maharashtra also force us to think where are we heading as a society? After the crime against two innocent people in Badlapur, the first step to give them justice was not taken until the public came out on the streets demanding justice. Will we now have to protest to even register an FIR?” read Rahul Gandhi’s post on X in Hindi.
He went on to say: “Why has it become so difficult for victims to even go to the police station? More efforts are made to hide crime than to provide justice, the biggest victims of which are women and people of weaker sections. Not filing an FIR not only discourages the victims but also encourages the criminals. All governments, citizens and political parties will have to seriously brainstorm on what steps should be taken to provide a safe environment to women in the society. Justice is the right of every citizen; they cannot be made dependent on the will of the police and administration.”
Two minor girls were sexually assaulted allegedly by man identified as Akshay Shinde on August 12 and 13 in the washroom of the school in Badlapur. There was reportedly a delay in responding to the crime by the police before they filed the FIR on August 16 and arrested the accused. After the alleged crime, parents have been demanding stricter safety measures and better supervision to prevent such incidents in the future, and residents have been demanding more stringent action against the accused. Opposition leaders alleged that the parents of the girls were made to wait for 11 hours at the Badlapur police station before their complaints were registered. There were huge protests in the area. Over 66 protesters were arrested by Maharashtra Police.
Days ago, a doctor in Kolkata’s R G Kar Medical College and Hospital was brutally raped and murdered, triggering massive protests across the country. A doctor in Uttar Pradesh’s Moradabad district was arrested for allegedly raping a 20-year-old Dalit nurse who worked at his hospital on August 17. Another sexual assault case was reported in Bihar where six people have been booked for gangrape and murder after the maimed body of a Dalit teenager was found in a village in Muzaffarpur district.
