Rape incidents 'underreported' in backward areas, victims mostly don't get justice

By Sudhansu R Das

The horrific incident of rape and murder of a sincere resident doctor in the RG Kar hospital in Calcutta has triggered nationwide protest from the doctors’ community, political parties and the general public. Prime Minister, Narendra Modi advocates death sentence for the rapists. He said fear should be instilled in the minds of the offenders.

Experts blame the unsafe atmosphere in workplace and deteriorating moral standard of people in the society. The incidents of rape are always underreported in backward areas and the victims in the majority of the cases do not get justice or wait for justice for decades.

If the offender belongs to the rich and influential class, he has various ways to get acquitted. It is good that CBI is investigating the RG Kar hospital rape; the CBI investigation may reveal the real faces behind the rape and other heinous crimes in the hospitals.

People's trust on the justice system shoud be restored; without which no country will progress. Inclusive justice is the foundation of a developed nation. Though the death sentence and stringent punishment will work as deterrence, it will not reduce the growing sexo-holism in the society.

The best solution to reduce the sex crimes lies in quality moral education in schools; children while studying should learn to respect women. Only morally strong teachers can give moral lessons to children.

It is very essential for the government to spend more on schools and appoint quality principals who can lead the teaching staff and create responsible future citizens. It is high time to teach self defense to both boys and girls; a girl can defend herself while a boy can rescue any woman in distress.

The police and the judges need to be honest and ensure quick punishment; no innocent person should be punished by law or get harassed by police. Law should protect those who dare to fight the predators. In many cases people remain silent fearing false implication.

Over the years smartphones have become a moral hazard. The majority of children get easily lured by adult content. It was propagated that smartphones help in browsing study related information. In reality it causes more harm than good.

If the offender belongs to the rich and influential class, he has various ways to get acquitted

If smartphones help in study, why keep schools and teachers? The free flow of sex contents in the internet degrades the morality of our children. It will create an unsafe atmosphere which will be difficult to control in the long run.

The growing unemployment, inflation, concentration of jobs in big cities, loss of interest among the village youth in physical work, urban centric education, erosion of community capital like ground water, rivers, crop diversity, mineral resources and minor forest products etc. compel youth to migrate to distant cities for jobs; this dismantle the joint family system which once taught children discipline and moral value. The majority of sex crimes happen due to this migration and breaking up of joint families.

When the youth from villages and small towns go to big cities for study or for work, there is nobody to guide them. Many of them fall into bad companies, return home late at night, get addicted to sex, alcohol and drugs. More jobs should be created in small towns and villages by tapping the natural sector economy and developing skills among the local youth. The root causes of the sex crimes should be treated with a sense of purpose.

Comments

Manufacturing, services: India's low-skill, middle-skill labour remains underemployed

By Francis Kuriakose* The Indian economy was in a state of deceleration well before Covid-19 made its impact in early 2020. This can be inferred from the declining trends of four important macroeconomic variables that indicate the health of the economy in the last quarter of 2019.

Why Indo-Pak relations have been on 'knife’s edge' , hostilities may remain for long

By Utkarsh Bajpai* The past few decades have seen strides being made in all aspects of life – from sticks and stones to weaponry. The extreme case of this phenomenon has been nuclear weapons. The menace caused by nuclear weapons in the past is unforgettable. Images of Hiroshima and Nagasaki from 1945 come to mind, after the United States dropped two atomic bombs on the cities.

Civil society flags widespread violations of land acquisition Act before Parliamentary panel

By Jag Jivan Civil society organisations and stakeholders from across India have presented stark evidence before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj , alleging systemic violations of the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RFCTLARR) Act, 2013 , particularly in Scheduled Areas and tribal regions.

Food security? Gujarat govt puts more than 5 lakh ration cards in the 'silent' category

By Pankti Jog* A new statistical report uploaded by the Gujarat government on the national food security portal shows that ensuring food security for the marginalized community is still not a priority of the state. The statistical report, uploaded on December 24, highlights many weaknesses in implementing the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in state.

Incarceration of Prof Saibaba 'revives' the question: What is crime, who is criminal?

By Kunal Pant* In 2016, a Supreme Court Judge asked the state of Maharashtra, “Do you want to extract a pound of flesh?” The statement was directed against the state for contesting the bail plea of Delhi University Professor GN Saibaba. Saibaba was arrested in 2014, a justification for which was to prevent him from committing what the police called “anti-national activities.”

The soundtrack of resistance: How 'Sada Sada Ya Nabi' is fueling the Iran war

By Syed Ali Mujtaba* The Persian track “ Sada Sada Ya Nabi ye ” by Hossein Sotoodeh has taken the world by storm. This viral media has cut across linguistic barriers to achieve cult status, reaching over 10 million views. The electrifying music and passionate rendition by the Iranian singer have resonated across the globe, particularly as the high-intensity military conflict involving Iran entered its second month in March 2026.

Concentration of wealth in India at levels 'comparable to colonial times', says new report

By Jag Jivan A new report published in March 2026 by the Centre for Financial Accountability and the Tax The Top campaign paints a stark picture of deepening economic disparity in India, documenting a concentration of wealth that it argues is “comparable to colonial times.” Titled Wealth Tracker India | Tax the Top. Close the Gap , the compilation presents data from the World Inequality Database and the Hurun Rich List to illustrate the meteoric rise of the ultra-wealthy alongside the stagnation and debt burdens of the majority.

Protesters in UK cities voice concerns over alleged developments in Bastar region

By A Representative Demonstrations were held across several cities in the United Kingdom on March 28, as groups and activists gathered to protest what they described as state actions in India under the reported “Operation Kagar.”

Beneath the stone: Revisiting the New Jersey mandir controversy

By Rajiv Shah A recent report published in the British media outlet The Guardian , titled “Workers carved the largest modern Hindu temple in the west. Now, some have incurable lung disease,” took me back to my visits to the New Jersey mandir —first in 2022, when it was still under construction, though parts of it were open to visitors, and again in 2024, after its completion.

Search This Blog