This refers to the article, “No closure to Nirbhaya’s agony” (December 29) by Shreya Kedia. The massive public outrage in the aftermath of the December 16, 2012, rape and murder of Nirbhaya and the demand for stringent laws to convict the perpetrators of crimes against women could not be leveraged unless it had the force of law backing it. There was a need for a reasoned examination of the dilemma on whether the establishment can bring down instances of crime by resting solely on the deterrent effect of criminal penalties.
The lawmakers continue to fetch false assurances of a ‘brighter’ tomorrow to the common man. The law seems to have failed to instill a fear of law in the mind of potential criminals, juveniles or otherwise, which renders them incapable of even contemplating such monstrous acts. It is time the grey areas of law were addressed and social structures put in place to find sustainable long-term solutions to the menace of crime against women.