Even as the scandal relating to the gang-rape and intimidation of a 34-year-old woman allegedly by PN Jayanthan, an influential leader whom the CPI(M) suspended from it the other day, and three of his associates from Wadakanchery, Thrissur is continuing to rock Kerala politics, official statistics show that four rape cases are being reported every day on an average from the State, famous as God’s Own Country across the world.
A total of 1,163 rape cases had been registered in the State in the first nine months of this year as per the data available with the Kerala Police, the force that is drawing flak presently for allegedly refusing to help the victim of the gang-rape in Thrissur when she had approached them with a complaint three months back.
Thiruvananthapuram, the State’s capital district, accounts for the highest number of rapes among the 14 districts in the State. Of the total 143 rape cases registered in Thiruvanantha-puram district in the January-September period, 89 had taken place in rural areas. The lowest number of rapes — 48 — was reported from the political volatile Kannur district.
Ernakulam, the district in which Kerala’s commercial capital Kochi falls, is in the second place in the list of districts with regard to the number of rapes taken place in the first nine months of the year– 130 – while Malappuram district stood in the third place with 123 rape cases and Thrissur in the fourth spot with 99 cases of rape.
“The data are quite alarming. But the point to be remembered is that the situation had been more or less the same for the past several years. On an average, three to four rape cases were being registered every day in the State since 2013,” A top police official pointed out quoting the rape statistics available with the State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB).
The rape cases registered in the State in 2015, 2014 and 2013 respectively were 1,263, 1,283and 1,221. The number of cases of crimes against women registered in Kerala in the first seven months of this year was 7,909, while this was 12,383, 13,880 and 13,738 respectively in 2015, 2014 and 2013.
“Consider the fact that only 500 rape cases had been registered in Kerala in 2007. But since 2011, there has been a rapid increase in rape cases. This shows that criminalization of sexuality in the Kerala society has been rapid in the new millennium along with the criminalization in other fields,” says senior journalist PVS Warrier.
Meanwhile, the National Commission for Women on Saturday registered a case suo moto over the gang-rape incident in Thrissur on the basis of the media reports on disclosures the victim had made on Thursday, as per reports. It has written to the State Chief Minister and Director General of Police seeking reports on the incident.
The commission has reportedly served notice on CPI(M)’s Thrissur district secretary K Radhakrishnan demanding explanation from him for his act of disclosing the name of the victim of the gang-rape the other day. The State police also have initiated an inquiry against Radhakrishnan, former Assembly Speaker and former minister, in the matter.
Meanwhile, the entire police team probing the gang-rape that had taken place in April, 2014 and the denial of justice to the victim even after she had lodged a formal complaint has been changed. The new probe team is headed by Assistant Superintendent of Police G Poonkuzhali and the investigation will be supervised by Additional DGP B Sandhya.
Poonkuzhali said, “I will be investigating this case afresh from the very beginning,” making it clear that it will be a re-investigation and not a follow-up probe. The victim had filed a complaint against Jayanthan, a CPI(M) councilor in the Wadakanchery Municipality, and others last August but she was “forced” to withdraw it due to threats from the accused.