Hyderabad Rape Made Headlines But Over 1 L Cases Pending in Courts
Encounter of accused in Hyderabad rape-murder made headlines but is encountering rape accused ‘justice served’?
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Video Editor: Mohd Ibrahim, Vivek Gupta
Police encounter of all four accused in the rape and murder of a Hyderabad vet dominated headlines and it was hailed as 'justice served' by many. But is encountering rape-accused the ‘only way forward’? What about justice in other rape cases that followed immediately after the Hyderabad encounter?
9 December: Nagpur
A five-year-old girl was killed after an alleged rape attempt by a 32-year-old man in Maharashtra's Nagpur. The child was found dead with her head smashed, on an agriculture farm in Kalmeshwar.
9 December: Muzaffarpur
A woman was admitted to a hospital in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur after she was allegedly set ablaze by a man who had attempted to rape her. The victim suffered 80 percent burns when she was admitted to Shri Krishna Medical College and Hospital in Muzaffarpur. She is currently battling for her life.
Did the encounter of the four accused of raping and killing the Hyderabad vet deter rapists? NO.
8 December: Agartala
A 17-year-old girl in Tripura’s Agartala was raped for one-and-a-half months and then set ablaze by a youth and his mother. The victim succumbed to her injuries at the Govind Ballabh Pant Medical College and Hospital.
8 December: Muzaffarnagar
A woman was attacked with acid by four men in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar for refusing to withdraw her complaint of rape against them. The 30-year-old woman suffered 30 percent burns, and is undergoing treatment at a Meerut hospital. The culprits are still absconding.
Was the encounter of the four accused of raping and killing the Hyderabad vet ‘justice served’ as it was hailed by many on social media? The answer is NO.
8 December: Kanpur
A 17-year-old girl, who had complained to the police last month that she was gang-raped by her neighbours, took her own life by hanging herself from the ceiling
at her cousin’s house in Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur.
8 December: Lucknow
A teenager tried to commit suicide after she was allegedly raped in Kakauli village in Madiyaon area in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh. The girl was rushed to the trauma centre and her condition is stated to be out of danger.
Outraged by the Hyderabad rape-murder, even MPs called for lynching, castrations and encounter of rapists. But is police encounter of rape accused or rape convicts the ‘only way forward’? The answer is again NO.
7 December: Patna
A five-year-old girl in Bihar's Darbhanga district was allegedly kidnapped and raped by an autorickshaw driver. The victim was playing outside her house in the village under the Bhawanpur PS limits when she was lured and taken to an isolated place in a nearby orchard by one Tettar Sahni, police said.
7 December: Unnao
A man tried to sexually assault a three-year-old girl in the Makhi police station area in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao. The minor was playing near her house when a youth of a neighbouring village tried to rape her in an adjoining field.
Has there been a dip in rape and sexual assault cases after the police encounter of the four accused of raping and killing the Hyderabad vet? NO.
What About the One Lakh Pending Rape Cases?
According to the data released by the National Crime Records Bureau:
- More than 32,500 cases of rape, about 90 a day, were registered with the police by the end of 2017.
- Indian courts disposed of only about 18,300 cases related to rape that year, leaving more than 1,27,800 cases pending at the end of 2017.
- In the 32,500 cases of rape registered with the police, about 30 percent of the victims were minors.
Despite the divided opinion on whether the police encounter of the four accused of raping and killing the Hyderabad vet is ‘justice served on time’, is justice delayed, justice denied? The answer is YES.
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