Make predators fear the law: SC pushes Delhi Police on safety of women in Capital
Taking note of crimes against women and their safety in the National Capital Region, the Supreme Court on Monday called for tougher deterrence against perpetrators of gender-based violence. A Bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice K Vinod Chandran, was hearing a suo motu case titled In Re: Recent rape incidents in Delhi NCR. Senior advocate Liz Mathew is the amicus curiae on the case.
“The only concern with which we have taken this suo motu is that there appears to be a feeling that women are not safe in the city, more particularly in some vulnerable pockets of the city,” the Bench observed.
It said the deficiencies, if any, should not facilitate commission of crime. “What is important is to prevent a crime, not what you do after a crime is committed,” it said.
The court added the police should ensure that every woman should feel safe even at 11 pm or late at night, whether travelling on the roads or in the metro. Stressing on the need to improve beat patrolling, the Bench observed, “You need to create fear in the mind of a man who is prone to commit offences. Unless you don’t create fear in the minds of goons, anti-social elements that Ab kuch kiya toh maare jayenge (If we do anything now, we’ll be killed.), you will not be able to prevent commission of crime.”
“Don’t let us down. Rise to the occasion. Every woman, every girl molested is our sister, our mother. It is a huge challenge for the police department. Don’t allow such things to happen. Take up the challenge,” Justice Pardiwala said.
The bench asked Delhi Police to intensify surveillance, patrolling at public places, including bus stands, railway and metro stations, parks, and schools and colleges where women are more vulnerable.
It said the most vulnerable areas were public places like parks having no security and sufficient lighting. “We want you to start working on these and it will help in prevention of commission of crime,” the bench told the police officials. It said function of the police is to maintain law and order.
“Rape is something which is not at all acceptable to any society,” it said, while impressing upon the police to go through the order passed by the court on September 28 in the matter.
The SC had on September 28 taken suo motu cognisance of news reports about crimes against minor girls and women across Delhi-National Capital Region (NCR), observing that such cases underline a systematic failure on the part of law enforcement authorities.
The court took cognisance of the alleged gang-rape of a 17-year-old girl at Aastha Kunj Park in Delhi, gang-rape and murder of a teenage girl in Swaroop Nagar area of Delhi and sexual assault of a minor girl inside a moving sleeper bus which the law enforcement agencies failed to intercept while it traversed a distance of over 47 km from Greater Noida to Delhi.
