Almost two years after of the brutal gangrape of a paramedic, the national Capital has failed to provide safe infrastructure and public transport to women, especially those who returning home after work. The rape of a 27-year-old woman executive has once again exposed the perils of commuting at night. The rape by a cab driver of Uber, the US-based company, on Friday night is another grim reminder that girls/women are not safe in the city during the night. All the tall talk of Delhi Police’s top brass and the city administration are mere noises in an empty vessel. It was amply manifested when the accused cab driver Shiv Kumar Yadav raped the woman by parking his car somewhere in Trinagar area of North-West Delhi and none of the beat patrols of Delhi Police noticed the stationary car. It is evident by the imprudent action by authorities that the measures taken in the aftermath of the December 16, 2012 incident are knee-jerk reactions to appease a furious public.
However, not much headway has been made since the horrific night of December 16, when the national Capital lost its innocence. The number of buses plying during the night has been increased but that appears to be a mere lip service as most of these buses are not equipped with webcams. Even though the DTC night service buses were enhanced from 38 on eight routes to 90 buses on 23 routes, the service remains inadequate. Women commuters also complain that the home guards that were deployed for the buses on night service are not seen these days. The situation remained the same even after the sensational gangrape of a northeastern girl who was kidnapped by criminals in Dhaula Kuan few years back. Delhi Police held meetings with various stakeholders to chalk out mechanisms for the PCR vans and other modes of transport ferrying women at night. It has deployed PCR vans at 70 designated places in the Capital to act as a deterrent but none of the vans were present where the recent incident occurred.
According to the Transport Department, 120 home guards have been deployed in DTC buses plying during night hours. Cancellation of permits of regular offenders of chartered buses acts as a deterrent to vehicle owners and only the transport authority is authorised to take action taken after the Dec 16. Post the December 16, 2012 incident, the Delhi Transport Department had promised home guards in the buses during night time but they are not to be seen.
The Capital has also seen an alarming increase in the number of rape cases being registered after the brutal gangrape. The gravity of the situation could be judged from the fact that Delhi has recorded a staggering 500 per cent increase in rape cases. The cases of molestation, eve-teasing, stalking and outraging the modesty have gone up considerably.
Delhi Police officers deny that the unprecedented rise in this crime has made the national Capital highly unsafe for girls and women. The rise in the figure is due to the ‘free and fair policy of registration’ of cases adopted by the force on the instructions of the Delhi Police Commissioner BS Bassi.
“There are standing instructions to the rank and file to register a case under the relevant Sections once a girl/woman approaches a police station with her complaint,” a senior police official said.
Now girls/women are coming forward and the substantial rise in the crime figures pertaining to cases against women is borne out of the changing mindset of the victims. The figures paint a grim picture nevertheless.
The crime figures especially crime against women paints a horrible picture of women’s safety and security. Delhi had recorded 706 rapes in 2012 and the same figure jumped to 1,636 in 2013. There was over 125 per cent increase in the rape cases and the trend at the end of 2014 is quite worrying. The data compiled by Delhi Police for the current year up to October 31 is an eye-opener. Delhi Police have registered 1,789 cases of rape and it is expected to rise further once the year 2014 comes to an end.
Cases of molestation had gone up to 3,515 in 2013 as compared to 727 in the previous year and in the process a whopping 500 per cent increase was recorded which has been a major cause of worry for the law enforcing agency. In the current year, till October 31, Delhi Police lodged 3,674 cases of molestation.
Similarly, cases of eve-teasing too have registered an increase in the current year. As per Delhi Police records, while there were only 162 cases in 2011, the same went up to 236 in 2012, 916 in 2013 to 1,092 cases till October 31 in the current year.
Cases of eve-teasing and stalking too went up a manifold as compared to 165 in 2012 to 852 in 2013. A scrutiny of the statistics provided by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) reveals a grim picture vis-Ã -vis crime against girls/women. Delhi Police had registered 572 rape cases in 2011 as against 507 rape cases reported in 2010. The figure stood at 469 in 2009. In 2008, the figure was 466, while in 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001 the figures were 598, 623, 658, 551, 490, 403 and 381 respectively. The rate of registration has gone up and is the major cause of worry for law enforcing agencies.
It may be recalled that the December 16 gangrape had created a nationwide rage and Delhi had witnessed unprecedented spontaneous protests at India Gate. Faced with tough questions, the political class ducked for cover and placed the entire blame on Delhi Police with the then Delhi Chief Minister going ballistic with her demands to oust the then Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar and petitioned the Centre to transfer Delhi Police under the control of the city Government.
When asked about the measure taken to ensure the safety and security of girls/women traveling during the night, Delhi Police officers said that they have left no stone unturned in providing safety and security to women in the Capital and several steps have been initiated and enforced in the aftermath of the unfortunate December 16 gangrape. Efforts made by Delhi Police have reaped benefits. Men and officers have been asked to be vigilant in ensuring the safety of girls and women. All police stations now have women helpdesks that function round-the-clock, the official added.
Police helpline 100 has been increased from 60 to 100 lines and there are standing orders to register cases anywhere in the Capital without bothering about jurisdiction. Crimes Against Women Cell has been working for redressal of complaints and grievances of women in distress. Rape Crisis Intervention Centres have been further sensitised with trained women police officers who deal with sexual crimes. Women police officers have been posted in all the police stations to investigate incidents of rape. Efforts are on to file a chargesheet against the accused within three months, a senior Delhi Police officer informed.
Although installation of GPS devices has been made mandatory by the Transport Department under the new permit conditions for the Public Service Vehicles (PSVs), the Transport Department and the city police are yet to evolve a mechanism to share GPS data. Though it was made a part of the new permit conditions for all (PSVs to be GPS-enabled, only 21,935 autos out of the 95,000 have GPS installed. Police verification of vehicle owners was made mandatory under new permit rules before obtaining registration of the PSVs. In the case of cab owned by Uber, the car was fitted with the GPS device but the company people failed to locate the cab and the driver as he escaped to Mathura without informing the management. “The GPS device can help only when the there is data sharing,” said a police officer.