Revenge, Reform Won’t End Crimes Against Women; Deterrence is Key

The juvenile convict in the 2012 Delhi gangrape walks free as his 3-year term in the juvenile home is over.

The juvenile convict in the Delhi gangrape case of December 2012, completed his sentence in the juvenile home on Sunday.

The administration has helped him start afresh as a tailor, with plans to issue him a grant of Rs 10,000 to set up his shop.

While the Delhi High Court refused to stay his release, the Sansad Bhavan is pondering over whether juvenile convicts deserve a harsher sentence.

Meanwhile the aam janta is lighting candles and the victim’s parents are still hoping for justice.

Central to all this, yet distant, is Jyoti Singh, the 23-year-old physiotherapy intern who succumbed to the brutality of which this juvenile was a part of.

He reportedly was the “worst” of the six monsters, she told the cops; he’d pulled her intestines out with his bare hands.

Would she want him to be a free man within three years?

She isn’t with us to answer that question.

If you think that this case is an exception, and the juvenile here got lucky, you are flawed. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) of India, there were 137 cases of juveniles involved in gangrapes all over the country last year.

In fact, 1989 other young boys were accused of rape, which shows that, at least five juveniles raped girls and women every day last year in India. And they too, if given the maximum punishment, will walk free in three years. It was Jyoti’s brutal gangrape and murder that prompted the government to act.

The five other offenders were awarded the death sentence, but the juvenile escaped only because he was six months short of 18 years. A reason why the Juvenile Justice Bill was proposed in August, 2014.

The Bill suggested that youths aged 16 to 18 years be treated as adults, be subjected to the same trial and punishment as adult criminals in case of heinous crimes.

Even countries like the United Kingdom, United States of America, Germany have these exceptions, it explained.

But the Bill is yet to see the light of day.

The Bill should have been passed a long time ago. We’ve learnt from the Delhi gangrape case’s example, and there is a long list of juveniles who have committed rapes, murders and kidnappings. These criminals were aged 16 years. To prevent such dastardly crimes in the future, passing the Bill is a necessity.

Mahesh Jethmalani, Lawyer

According to the NCRB, over 2600 juveniles arrested in the country last year were repeat offenders. They had been arrested, tried, convicted, and spent time in correction homes, yet, returned to crime.

The main purpose of juvenile homes is to ensure that the youngster is reformed.

But there is no way to ensure that he will come out changed, just like there’s no guarantee that he won’t.

By and large, correctional homes is a very neglected area, and the government really needs to put in more investment, finance and human resources into these places. They are short-staffed, with not enough trained social workers and counsellors. Also in terms of physical and vocational training facilities, there’s a lot left to be desired. But at the same time, to say that nothing comes out of this is also too much of a sweeping generalisation. A lot of this depends on the individual, to what extent the person is motivated to turn a new leaf. But whether it is this juvenile or any other, unless we are very serious about the rehabilitative facilities, the investment, there is no point. Also, harsher penal measures will not solve the problem. All these people who are talking about longer jail terms are confusing victim justice with rehabilitation. The fact that a victim has been harmed cannot be compensated with keeping the accused for longer periods in prison or custody.

Vijay Raghavan, Professor and former Chairperson, Centre for Criminology and Justice, Tata Institute of Social Sciences

The debate around the Bill’s sanction mainly revolves around whether we want revenge or reform, whether we want to punish the offenders or ensure that they do not indulge in crimes again.

The answer, in my opinion, is neither revenge nor reform; it’s deterrence. We shouldn’t have men who we wish to correct or punish; we shouldn’t have room for thoughts of such atrocity. And for that, we require laws that are deterrent, strong enough to scare criminals, and staunch enough to discourage crime.

If the Bill is implemented, it still won’t do justice to Jyoti Singh, since laws are not applicable in retrospect. But it might prevent more women from becoming her.

Let’s hope that age becomes just a number.

Let’s hope that history, for once, stops repeating.

(Puja Changoiwala has worked as a crime reporter with the Hindustan Times in Mumbai, and has recently finished a non-fiction book on a true crime story from the city, to be published by Hachette India next year.)