A seven year old girl was raped in Bokaro by a middle aged man who lured her with chocolates. The accused was arrested soon.
In another case, a differently abled woman was raped by four men in Giridih district recently.
The data provided on the website of Jharkhand Police shows that more than 500 cases of rape have been registered in the State from January to April this year.
The information provided on the website also shows that a total of 2329 cases of crime against women, including rape, dowry deaths and witch hunting deaths were reported in the State from January 2018 to April 2019.
There has been a constant rise in the reporting of rape cases in the State in last four years. In 2015, 1053 rapes cases were registered in Jharkhand which increased to 1109 in 2016, 1251 in 2017 and 1393 in 2018.
This year, 546 cases of rape have already been registered since January to April.
This year from January to April, the cases of rape reported in the State capital alone were 47.
Women living in Ranchi claimed that they do not feel very safe while travelling alone after dark. “When I am late returning from office, I call my brother to pick me up, because commuting in public transport like auto rickshaws is not safe after 8 PM. One often has to face catcalling by the drunkards who huddle up at dark corners and cigarette shops,” said Aparajita Sinha, employee of a private firm.
The girls who use private transportation, such as two-wheeler to avoid harassment are often followed by bikers who pass vulgar comments, said Sonali Horo, a resident of Tatisilwai, who herself had to face the problem at times.
Talking about rape cases, Priyanka Mishra a student based in Jamshedpur said, “Rape is something that concerns everyone and it is the lenient attitude of the cops which increases its risk”.
Ranchi city SP Sujata Kumari Veenapani said that the police are taking extensive measures to ensure safety of women in the city. She said, “We take immediate action against criminals and encourage women to file a complaint if they ever face any safety issue in the city. Community campaigns are being organised in schools and other educational institutions to disseminate information on women safety. We also hold self-defence classes and awareness programmes to train women to protect themselves in any untoward situation.”