Author-Vartika Tripathi, Amity University, Lucknow
ABSTRACT
We have come a long way with are achivements building technology , reaching to moon and many more but still failing at the safety of our women and providing them a free and safe environment . you can add many reasons when you hear about a rape on news channels through social media , newspapers and people around you ( society can add many reasons for a rape attempted against a women may be “ she was wearing a short dresses” or “going late at night” but what would be the answer for a rape against a 6 months old child , a 6 year old girl going to school, a 12 year old girl being at her home , a women going to a movie with her boyfriend and a 75 year old lady being at her home , and sometimes it can be your family member and just day before I am writing this heard about a gangrape against a women who came to see a different country and explore but later the trip made everything go change .
Rape is the most comman and heinous crime perpetuated against a women . The national crime records bureau (NCRB) reports shows that a women is raped in every 16 minutes the cases get increased by 4 % every year 32,033 rapes cases were registered across the country and an average of 88 cases daily are being registered .
These are just the number , there are many cases which doesn’t come into light .
Keywords – rape , criminal law , psychological effects , reasons etc .
INTRODUCTION
RAPE – ITS MEANING- “ as per Section 375 in The Indian Penal Code, 1860 defines rape as that if a man is said to commit “rape” if he—
(a) penetrates his penis, to any extent, into the vagina, mouth, urethra or anus of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(b)inserts, to any extent, any object or a part of the body, not being the penis, into the vagina, the urethra or anus of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(c)manipulates any part of the body of a woman so as to cause penetration into the vagina, urethra, anus or any part of body of such woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person; or
(d)applies his mouth to the vagina, anus, urethra of a woman or makes her to do so with him or any other person,under the circumstances falling under any of the following seven descriptions:—
(First.)— Against her will.
(Secondly.) — Without her consent.
(Thirdly.) — With her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her or any person in whom she is interested, in fear of death or of hurt
Fourthly.) — With her consent, when the man knows that he is not her husband and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married.
(Fifthly.) — With her consent when, at the time of giving such consent, by reason of unsoundness of mind or intoxication or the administration by him personally or through another of any stupefying or unwholesome substance, she is unable to understand the nature and consequences of that to which she gives consent.
(Sixthly.) — With or without her consent, when she is under eighteen years of age.
(Seventhly.) — When she is unable to communicate consent.
Explanation 1.— For the purposes of this section, “vagina” shall also include labia majora
Explanation 2.— Consent means an unequivocal voluntary agreement when the woman by words, gestures or any form of verbal or non-verbal communication, communicates willingness to participate in the specific sexual act Provided that a woman who does not physically resist to the act of penetration shall not by the reason only of that fact, be regarded as consenting to the sexual activity.
Exception 1.— A medical procedure or intervention shall not constitute rape.
Exception 2.— Sexual intercourse or sexual acts by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under fifteen years of age, is not rape.”
BHANWARI DEVI CASE 1992
According to Bhanwari Devi, at 6 pm on 22 September 1992, while she and her husband were working in their field, five men of her village attacked her husband Mohan Lal, leaving him unconscious. The five men whom she named were: Ram Karan, Ram Sukh, Gyarsa, Badri and Shravan Sharma. When she came to her husband’s rescue, she said, Gyarsa and Badri raped her, while the other three pinned her down on the ground.
Bhanwari reported the incident to Rasila Sharma, the pracheta (block-level worker), who took her to the Bassi police station to lodge a First Information Report (FIR). The FIR was lodged after surmounting police scepticism and indifference, a phenomenon several rape complainants have faced in the Indian context.
JUGDEMENT
Five judges were changed, and it was the sixth judge who ruled that the accused were not guilty, stating inter alia that Bhanwari’s husband couldn’t have passively watched his wife being gang-raped. The judge infamously stated, “Since the offenders were upper-caste men and included a brahmin, the rape could not have taken place because Bhanwari was from a lower caste.” A state MLA organised a victory rally in the state capital Jaipur for the five accused declared not guilty, and the women’s wing of his political party attended the rally to call Bhanwari a liar.The State Government decided to appeal against the judgment. The judgement led to a nationwide campaign for justice for Bhanwari Devi. However, by 2007, 15 years after the incident, the Rajasthan High Court held only one hearing on the case and two of the accused were dead.
THE NIRBHAYA CASE
A 23-year-old medical student was returning after a movie with her friend and took a bus. On the bus, she was gang-raped by six people and was brutally assaulted. After the rape, she along with her friend were thrown out of the bus naked. The girl died later .
Judgment
In this case, the Supreme The court awarded death penalty to four of the accused among six. One of them being a juvenile was convicted by the Juvenile Justice Board and sent to the correctional home. The other one committed suicide before the judgment was delivered.
After this case, the need to amend certain provisions of Section 375 was felt so the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 was brought into effect. Under the newly amended section, the punishment of rape is at least seven years which may extend to life imprisonment. Any man who is a police officer, medical officer, public officer, or public servant may be imprisoned for at least 10 years if commits rape. Where rape leads to the death of the victim or entered into a vegetative state the punishment of life imprisonment extending to death has been prescribed. The punishment for gang rape is at least 10 years.
THE KATHUA RAPE CASE 2018
6 of the 7 men accused in the 2018 rape and murder of an 8-year-old girl in Kathua, J&K were convicted by a special court in Pathankot, Punjab. The case involves an 8-year-old girl from Kathua, J&K who was abducted, drugged, raped and killed. Notably, the deceased is a Muslim girl and the accused are Hindus, which has made it an issue of communal politics. The formation of a group called the Hindu Ekta Manch in support of those arrested added to this. Also, the role played by members of the Bharatiya Janata Party, including two Ministers in the then J&K government, had added to the communal politics. The case was thus transferred from J&K to Punjab by the Supreme Court for a fair trial.
JUDGEMENT
Six of the seven men accused in the case were convicted. Three of the men got life term, and the other three got five-year imprisonment. The court sentenced to life imprisonment the mastermind, Sanji Ram, a retired government official and priest of the temple where the crime took place ii. special police officer Deepak Khajuria iii. Ram’s nephew Parvesh Kumar Special Police Officer (SPO) Surender Verma, head constable Tilak Raj, and sub-inspector Anand Dutta were awarded 5 years in prison for destroying evidence. The court acquitted the seventh accused, Vishal son of Sanji Ram, giving him the “benefit of doubt”. The crime branch filed the charge sheet against 8 persons, including a ‘juvenile’.
While the time , place , and age of the victims vary across these three cases one thing remains constant that is the act of rape and the perpetrators mindset .
A sexual assaulter can be any kind of person .
There isn’t one specific type who commits such kinds of crime .
These men have diverse backgrounds , social status , different personalities and mentalities. What can actually be the motive behind them engaging in these kinds of act is the question which can’t be answered easily.
Punishments according to law
Indian penal code section 376 (1) states about the punishment for rape
“Indian penal code section 376 (2) states that if the persons in authority commit rape, they will also be liable to the same punishment.
Indian penal code section 376 (3) states that if any person rapes a woman under the age of 16 years , he will be liable to be punished for twenty years, which may extend to Life Imprisonment”
But as far as I see I observe few points which can be reasons
- Lack of education ( the basic learning of morals , values and ethics )
- A lack of empathy
- Toxic masculinity (patriarchal conceptions of men control over women bodies )
- Hostility towards women ( seeing women as sex object )
- Sexual trauma
- Westernizations
- Society environment
- Sex education
- Gender gap ( in india if a women sits with a boy or if they sit together it is perceived in a inappropriate way and the intention of it is misjudged )
- Misperceptions about women (“if she is wearing a short dress then definitely that means she wants sex”) but one similar view can also be like that if the women is walking alone at night , going to pubs getting drunk can be triggering point and a provoking step )
But then what about a rape against a 6 month old newborn ? does even clothes matter .
- Attitudes towards law – the increase in the rape and crime against women the law against the culprits comes with several loop holes the court takes years to decide the punishment for a rapist which is evident
The change of escaping from the crime is high .this motivates them to do the crime.
The psychological aspects a women survivor faces
In Most of the cases the rapist makes sures that the women does not stay alive they make her condition worst as they can but if my luck she survives it gives her .
A life time trauma, low self esteem , suicidal thoughts , self blame ,hatred etc.
Conclusion
There is a thought which prevails in the society that is “ I am powerful so I am right”. Which comes from the patriarchal society and still is prevailing .
This toxic masculinity harms men , men and women are only different in terms of there physical and biological behaviors
The ability to love ,care be responsible is same
We always feel that toxic masculinity only harms a women but greatly it harms and affects the man .
Hence toxic masculinity which is in today’s generation being glamorized can be a main reason towards the growing rates of crime
“Power benefits but humanity loses”
Once in a interview , activist kamla bhasin said “when she got raped ,people said I lost my honour .. but how did I lose my honour ? my honour is not my vagina .. which makes me think that
How come this society sets parameter that if a girl is being raped her identity is lost , and that rape will define the honour of the community .
It’s the rapist who’s indentity gets lost and his honour .
The courts and laws need to get more strict and provide death sentence to such convicts in order to make the graph go down . the task of law agencies should get more responsible
The legislature has to make any and every amendments if the rape laws are to be any deternce .
Women have to be more strong and responsible,have to come forward and fight
The education of both men and women get more and more to understand the both good and bad and what is actually right and wrong .
“ tell your story to someone or to yourself. The more you tell it the less pain you feel”
References
- www.indiankannon
- www.google.in
- Indian penal code