12 Crimes against Women in India Sheetal Ranjan Abstract Crimes against women in India constitute a serious issue meriting a separ section in the national statistics compiled by the National Crime Records Bure (NCRB) of India. This chapter discusses the range and extent of crimes therein as well as to throw light on a few other gender-based crimes against females. It describes various crimes, provides data from national statistics, and discusses issues related to low reporting. It also addresses the social norms that tolerate or propagate this form of violence. It discusses the development of some these pieces of legislation and how the law enforcement agencies and courts hav handled this issue. It also highlights the work of various organizations and how they have helped in shaping policy and practice and provided advocacy and support. Finally the chapter suggests possible next steps to prevent violence against women in India. and erad Introduction “To cope with the continuous demand for data on the burning issue of “Crimes against Women’ a new chapter has been added,” Director of National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) in the P 1992 publication of Crime in India (Amarnathan, 1994). The new chaprer Ses th response to the ongoing feminist movement in India, resulting from stated the then reface to thePee oe ba, a Seay tes Se, 250 Sheetal Ranjan the international call for attention to gender disparities and Was a violation of human rights. Ab Commission of W the labeling of bout the same time, the first National ‘omen was formed in India to “fulfill the rveillance fune Bee aalitate redressal of grievances and to accelerate che . development of women” (National C first steps recognizing issues of violer of the Protection of W: z I acio-economic ne Sommission for Women, 2009). These 4 nce affecting women led to the passing ‘ n of Women From Domestic Violence Act in 2005 to pro- vide for more effective protection of the rights of women guarante: £ the Constitution who are victims of violence of any kind 2 the family or related matte nder occurring within 15 (Chatterji, 2006). Another recent step taken to protect the rights of women is the Protection of Women against Sexual = Harassment at Work Place Bill, 2010 4 Saravanan (2000) in her literature review frames crimes and violence € gainst women as a form of discrimination. The World Human Rights t ag Conterence (1993) recognized crimes against women as a violation of human Pa rights. Consequently, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the . a Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women (1993) which % ee defined “violence against women” as “any act of gender-based violence th. i results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or i‘ suffering to women, including threats of such acts, coercion or arbitrary ay deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life” (Article 1, p. 3). International recognition of violence against women as a violatio n of human rights does not mean that violence against women ceases to ex Coomaraswamy, who was appointed Special Rapporteur (1994-2003) on Violence against Women by the then United Nations (UN) Secretary. General Kofi Annan, pinpointed various types of violence against women in the UN's 1995 report: | j | | ; | | i 4) Physical, soxual and psychological violence occurring in the family, includ- ing battering, sexual abuse of female children in the household, dowry-related violence, marital rape, female genital mutilation and other traditional practices harmful to women, non spousal violence and violence related to explestarnnn b) Physical sexual and psychological violence occurring within the ‘community, including rape, sexual abuse, sexual harassment and intim at work, in educational institutions and. forced prostitution. ©) Physical, sexual and psychological violence perpetrated or condoned by the i state, wherever it occurs. (UN General Assembly, 1993) general dation elsewhere, trafficking in women andCrimes against Women in India Women can be victims of many different types of crimes as defn, ous legal statutes in their respective countries. In its report, Crime, NNCRB states that even though women may be victims of crimes « theft, robbery, cheating, etc., only those crimes that specifically target, because of their gender are discussed in the chapter dealing with “cy, against Women.” The NCRB classifies “Crimes against Women’ ung, two broad categories: Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Lay, (GLL). The types of crimes listed under the IPC include (@) Rape (Section, 375 and 376), (4) Kidnapping and abduction for specified purposes (Sections 363-373), (<) Homicide for dowry and dowry deaths or their attempts (Gections 302 and 304B), (4) Torture or cruelty-both mental and physi. cal (Section 498A), (¢) Molestation and assault (Section 354), (f) Sexual harassment (Section 509), and (g) Importation of girls (up to 21 years of age) (Section 366B). Certain laws in India that have been passed under are considered gender-specific. Crimes under SLL include offenses under the (a) Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956, (+) Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, (o) Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986, and (d) Commission of Sati (Prevention) Act, 1987. The following sections explain the various pieces of legislation. Indian Penal Code Categories of Crimes against Women RAPE Under the IPC, a man commits rape if he has sexual intercourse with a woman without her consent, against her will, by threatening or instilling fear to obtain her consent, by falsely convincing the woman she is legally _-matried to him, by obtaining her consent while she is intoxicated or unable to understand what is happening, or with or without the consent ofa woman under the age of 16. Ir is interesting to nore’ that under Section 375 of the TPG, an exception is made for what constitutes rape, which states that sexual intercourse of a man with his own wife, the wife not being under 15 years of age, is not rape. The first time Indian legislature recognized marital rape as an offense was in 2006 when the revised Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act was implemented. As a result the IPC expanded its definition252 Sheetal Ranjan of spousal cruelty to include emotional, verbal, and cccmemic abuse of a aeaeen, The only clause that specifically addresses marital rape is!" relation to judicially separated partners (Section 3764) KIDNAPPING AND ABDUCTION ng and abducting as being asa result of a minor being -s of murder, ransom, Sections 363-373 of the IPC explain kidnappi calawful under the following circumstances: (4) kidnapped for begging or soliciting, (6) for the purho™ ae rfnement, slavery, of forced marriage, (0) for the procuration of minor Sree, (2) imporeation of women from foreign count ™ and (¢) for buying or selling minor women for prostitution (IPC, Act No. 45 Sections 363-373, 1860). Horciwe ror Downy anp Downy DEATHs OB ‘Trrein ATTEMPTS DDowry refers wo the property a woman brings to her marriage. This property Her fectads ext, poods, or money. The Dawry Prohibision ‘Act, 1961 Guactibes the ancient Vedic practice of dowry in its {ntroduction to the Bill. It says thatthe ancienc rites in the Vedic period were associated with “kanyadan” Ging away the bride) It was laid down in the ‘Dharmashastra that an act of nnpadan is not complete sill the groom was given 4 “dakshina” (gift). This fifi was offered out of affection and was not considered compulsory being eo imarily voluntary practice without any coercive overtones In the course APs he voluntary clement in dowry disappeared and the coercive ee Seas een taking deep root not onl inthe martiage ceremony but also tn post marital relationships. What was originally conceived of as 2 “gift” grew to become the evil of “dowry,” resulting in numerous incidents of bride burning and torture leading to death. The IPC explains what constitutes “dowsy deh” in Seton 3048: Essay, if woman incurs any boily injury or burns on her body and dies within the first seven years of marria tind itis found that she was harassed or abused by her husband (or rel: ne Be yer dry demande before her death (1°C Bh No. 45 Section 304B, 1860). Sa Torture oe pent of oS IPC, torture of a woman by her husband ( husba ive), mentally or physically, means subjecting hi e: elty in the following ways: (2) any action that would Bocca oCrimes against Women in India 254 emamit suicide, (4) any conduct that would cause serious and/or lif co kareatening injury to the woman, ot (c) ha ‘assment (IP t No. 45 Se cares (G) (IPC, ActN Section Mo.estation ‘9 any woman, intending to Outrage or knowing it to be likely that he wi 1 thereby outrage her modesty” (IPC, Act No. 45 Section 354, 1860) SexuAL HARASSMENT Sexual harassment also deals with insulting the modesty of any woman and is defined in Section 509 of the IPC as words, sounds, gestures, or objects that are intended to be seen or heard by a woman and/or intradks upon the privacy of the woman (IPC, Act No. 45 Section 509, 1860) IMPORTATION Under Section 366B of the IPC it is unlawful for anyone to import a woman from another country into India who is under the age of 21 for the purposes of forced, seduced, or illicit intercourse (IPC, Act No. 45 Sectior 366B, 1860). Special and Local Law Categories of Crimes against Women Tmmorat Trarric (PREVENTION) AcT The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 was passed for India to be in line with the Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others, signed in New York in 1950 The Act makes trafficking and sexual exploitation of persons for commercial purposes a punishable offense. The Act has undergone two amendments (in 1978 and in 1986), but it was not perceived to be an effective deterrent In response, another amendment was passed in 2006 called The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Amendment Bill. The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Resource Development was asked to examine and report on the Act The committee recommended certain revisions, but the Act could not be passed as it lapsed in both the houses of the parliament. Much controversyeee sedate urdieson and power undeenal Code, Procuratic Ntercourse) (Sec considered a minor b. 366A, y law) Extent of Crimes against Women This section examines the crime statistics as published by the NCRB fo: gender-based crimes in India. at : : Table 12.1 presents an overview of crime data starting from 1992 when ‘Crimes against Women’ was first allocated @ separate chapter in the National Report, to the most recent 2009 data. Taking the data at face value, it is evident that there is an increasing trend of victimization across almost all categories. One also needs to understand how some of these crimes appear to be disproportionately higher than others. The largest reported crime against women in 2009 is “torture.” There is more than a fourfold growth in this crime from 1992 to 2009. In comparison, dowry deaths and crimes reported under the Dowry Pro! ion Act, 1961, have just about doubled. One reason could be the increasing awareness of dowry laws brought about by cable television networks that have spanned across all parts of urban and rural India in the last decade. This has resulted i ness and willingness to report dowry-related torture. The ‘dowry death and torture under the Dowry Prohibition Jaws have not been effective in reducing dowry lawyers of the victim and the police often try to under “torture” instead of categorizing it orts just 123 cases of feticide and Records Bureau, Ministry of git! child, coupled with —* or sex-determination ticide and fericideCrimes against Women in India 2 Table 12.1 Gender-based Grimes against Women in India 1992 1995 2000 2005 2010 Rape Tilia 1754 16496 18359 2272 Kidnapping and abduction 12,077 14,063 15,023 «15,750 «29,795 Dowry death 4,962 5,092 6,995 6,787 8,391 ‘Torture ipso 8,127 45,778 «98,919 94,04) Molestation 0,585 28475 92,940 34,175 (BB,TIS Sexual harassment 10,751 4,756 11,024 9,984 9,961 Importation of girls na 191 64 149 6 Commission of Sati 1 27 0 1 0 (Prevention) Act, 1987 Immoral Traffic (Prevention) 12,580 8,447 9,515, 5,908 2,499 ‘Act, 1956 Indecent Representation of nay 539 6,612 2,917 495 Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986 Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 2,102 2,814 2,876 3,204 5,182 Feticide nw 38 na 86 wt Infanticide na 139 na, 108 100 Procuration of minor gitls na 107 nay 145 679 Selling of girls for na 7 nits 50 130 prostitution Buying of girls for na. 19 na, 28 78 prosticution, ‘Source: National Crime Records Bureau reports, Notes: (i) Sexual harassment was called eve-teasing, in 1992 and previously; the name has been : changed in response to suggestions from the National Commission for Women sa (i) In 1990 there were 52 reported incidents of Sari Gi), Numbers ‘of feticide and infanticide refer to both sexes, since the NCRB does ‘not provide numbers by gender, fie) naa. = numbers not available from the NCRB. : ed in 1999. These numbers are not disaggregated by sex in the reports. "Yet, given the regular occurrence, one can safely assume that the majority ¢ are females. Also, the reported numbers are astonishingly low. One for this is the societal support for the practice, Who is to report what e privacy of the examination room between the pregnant wornan ainer? Various research studies have examined this issue and sr numbers of female feticide and infanticide than reported report, Using data from the Special Fertility and Mortality ‘more than one million households in 1998 it is estimated tive assumptions) that India loses about 500,000 girls 4 year ut 10 million female fetuses may have been aborted in two mar, Vasa, Dhingra, Thiruchelvam, & Moineddin, 2006)se aoe The Problem of Reporting. Social Norms and G " Women Gender-baseq c women in India do violent; many percet Evidence of the * id NHES (2910), t wife-beating is justified ‘ing the house or children ind The view is thata woman should remain a cal women considered icons of serving their husbands and in- feel that women should be s "Indian men toward women i “Sati” or “Savitri” (mythologi- modesty and virtue, who spend thei laws). Nurtured with these ideas, Indian men ubservient to them. Research on attitudes of indicates that 65% believe there are times that women deserve to be beaten. Men are confined to these patriarchal ideolo- gies, which reflect in their attitudes and behaviors (Gaynair, 2011). Also, in this “process of socialization, violence is a means by which such discipline is enforced and values are instilled” and young males inherit such forms of consciousness and behavior along with other ideas of being a macho male (Giri, 2003). It is ingrained in the female child that she is weak and is in need of protection physically, emotionally, socially, and economically. This sets the scene for her to be vulnerable to all types of abuse and exploitation from “womb to tomb” (Saravanan, 2000). The stereotypical Indian family i f patriarchal but is also hierarchical. There, older and more powerful ee w and sisters-in-law) can also be perpetrators i Re Rativonally, 2s Cootnsraswamy tie52) property, appendage (or even almost her. It is ea that a woman can vesGuin thie ont of fine women (565%) beliewe chat wif-beating is justified (Gong og hs Honing rms neg ent i ee Be ont wie ee ae (796), wife showing disrespect to in-laws (34%), husband suspecting his wie of infidelicy S390" ore nk Pd peer any on moe get, MD or other items.» 2010). How prom be put in place? How effecrive interpret the law? What kind Prove abuse? Many questions re long-awaited step in the right direction, The courts of India have a great challenge ahead in terms of what they need to do. One issue brought to the notice of an inte the Human Rights Watch is the admissibility of the “finger tet” in coarre i titled “India’s Need for Sound Standards for Conducting and Forensic Examinations of Rape Survivors” (2010), Human documents the indi involves, as the name suggests, measure “vaginal laxity” and thereby d to sex” before the alleged assault. This rapist (Human Rights Watch, 2010). dations to the Indian government 10 forensic testing of rape victims, | legal aid to women facing violence at ‘campaigns about the law among women and the pul vey, interviews and group discussions in three maj stakeholders’ attitudes toward the law. ICRW wi 10 track the effectiveness of the PWDVA 01 the lower house (Lok Sabha) for women. P Indian women are represente If the Women’s Reservation representatives would increase threefay pitt 266 Sheetal Ranjan Next Steps nder ls a special publication on violence prevention and promoting, gend ais eas violence against women, the World Health Organization (WHO) identifies a few key strategies based on research evidence. It states that promoting gender equality is a critical patt of violence prevention. It suggests: school initiatives should be well placed to prevent violence against ‘women; community interventions can empower women and engage with ‘men; media interventions can alter gender norms and promote women’s tights. The WHO stipulates that programs must engage both males and females to be successful (World Health Organization, 2010). The suggee- ‘tons in this report need to be taken very seriously by India to combat lence susrounding crimes against women and gendered violence. The report proridssa blueprint ofevidence-driven practices that can be a starting point {or holistically addressing this problem. As protests in lace-2012 against the gang pe of student in New Delhi have shown, a deep well of anger exiete ‘tegarding official inaction on crimes against women in India, Acknowledgments Sei ake Gat nd aren Kh mach ope References net cai oe at Pee Cre in faa Naina Cie Recerds Berens Cee Sain hardin scalpel aah IS 9991CT 99a ee pdt (Gceetsed on January 29, 2011), Me era Be Comets 0000, Laie Tow ya of woking fr Sunk Wo CUA sat faethe clin Wipro heemamtgh macioe ee ‘ews/AS-23- (ccemed on January 29,2011), Biswas, LD. (2009, October 5). Mariel ra ae eomarsewamty Radha (1992), Of Kall bom: Women, Hclnce and the Swi Lente tn Schils, Marge A) (pp, 49-62), Predom from wheres Women? eoceoa to, } around the world. New York: UNIFEM, ‘Chaed. $2006, December 14) A mage, i the pe of lw agsinet deme silence Inds together: The news in proportion —Home pag. Aratble online ve hep inea Indinogether.org/2006/ecwom-domvol his (accemed on January 29, 30817 pl Gagnon, Ine hose