Who is Responsible For Crimes Against Women?

While everything from the manner in which women dress to the eating of fast food and the use of mobile phones has been added to the cause list of why appalling crimes against women continue to take place in India’s most populous state, a recent report points to ‘unspeakable neglect of women’s rights, hatred, misogyny, and breakdown of governance, crisis and justice protocols’ as the actual reasons behind this trend.

Based on findings from primary research undertaken in Badaun, Sitapur and Bareilly- all three scenes of recent, sordid crimes, the 28 page report (titled ‘Report and Recommendations on Crimes Against Women in Uttar Pradesh’) puts the root of these crimes in ‘administrative lathery coupled with collusion between the police, politicians and local goons’ which leads to general lawlessness. Add to these a police system that places the onus of proof on the victim, a generally unsupportive social structure, woefully few police women, lack of any kind of training on dealing with crimes against women and it becomes clear why the state turned in the highest number of complaints of harassment and crimes against women to the National Commission for Women (2853 out of 2889 in 2011).

Authored by Shefali Misra and Hema Bhadhwar Mehra, the report’s most disheartening portions are perhaps on the lack of social support for the victim and her family. Thus it is not uncommon to find families that leave their villages for fear of ridicule and those which wilt under threats and accept a compromise in lieu of money. While physical safety of the victim and her family is compromised, there is no attention paid to the psychological health of the victim. Even panchayats which were envisaged as truly representative governance structures are loath to side with a victim simply because they mirror the general lack of sensitivity and understanding towards dealing with crimes against women.

None of this is however peculiar to the current regime, despite whatever perceptions have been created. Crime data reveals that there has been a steady rise in crimes against women since 2007. According to the 2010 report of the National Crimes Research Bureau, the total number of reported crimes against women was 213,585. Of these, 20,169 were in UP (9.44%) – the highest in the country. As the report says- ‘With an average female work participation rate of 17% – 8 points lower than the national average, women in the state continue to fall far short of fully functional capabilities’.

Mishra, a social activist, former international civil servant with the UN, an alumna of the London School of Economics and the Henan Agriculture University (China) points out that while the media has been vocal about calls to dismiss the SP government, no one has been asking the BJP why it is not implementing the Verma Committee Report on Police Reforms. “While state police is a state subject, the issue of women’s safety and national reforms is an issue anchored by the BJP. There is not a single Nirbhaya centre or crisis center they have approved till date. In fact, despite Narendra Modi’s super speech on women’s safety this 15th August, he has chopped funding for women in his budget. So there are no apparent shifts or changes despite much talk”, she says.

The report’s co-author Mehra who is a social activist from the village of Ujhani in Badaun says that while most of the findings in the report were along expected lines, the intensity of the violence came as a surprise. “There is a complete disregard for law and for figures of authority. This is now more marked than ever”.

Furthermore while no structures such as shelters, rape counselling units, lawyers and counsellors who support families have been set up, even existing provisions such as the Legal Service Authority mandated to protect women’s rights under the National Legal Services Authority Act have fallen to disuse.

Dotted with examples, the report quotes one where a woman hanged herself in jail while the district’s top judicial officer, the Chief Judicial Magistrate was on an inspection visit. An inquiry was ordered and it was revealed that the deceased had been strangulated- thus bringing out starkly how crimes do not cease even in the presence of those entrusted with ensuring justice.

Among the 10 recommendations of the study are an immediate implementation of the Verma Committee report findings, the need for Standard Operating Procedures and response protocols in dealing with crimes against women, strict disciplinary action against personnel for neglect and misconduct in handling of such cases, justice protocols and fast track courts, protection and support to victims and families in line with national and international statutes, third party surveillance and media monitoring.

The authors have linked the report to the #saveourwomen campaign which besides mobilizing people to talk about issues related to women’s safety will eventually file a PIL as to why many of the recommendations of government appointed bodies on the issue have not been implemented.

Aparna Bisht Yadav, Lucknow based social activist, an International Relations alumna of the University of Manchester, who has initiated the B Aware campaign across the state, points out that a lack of one’s basic legal rights also hampers women’s access to justice.

Yadav raises a pertinent question when she asks how many among us would be confident enough to walk into a police station to file a complaint and says the problem starts with what we are taught at school. “For decades we have been taught to write letters describing our summer vacations. Why have we not been taught more practical things?” she asks.

Yadav has thus kick started her campaign in schools, taking children to local thanas as a first to get over the palpable fear they have of the police. In colleges this transforms into a quick primer on one’s rights in front of the police. Self defence classes and the giving of pepper sprays are also part of the campaign.

While Yadav’s start is a laudable first, as the report points out, it is apparent that mindsets need to be changed, and changed immediately if there is to be any hope in the fight against crimes heaped on women.