NCRB Data Shows That A Woman Is Raped In India EVERY 16 Minutes. Let That Sink In

NCRB Data Shows That A Woman Is Raped In India EVERY 16 Minutes. Let That Sink In

India is no country for women. It might be a country for cows and goddesses but not for women. Just when we were reeling from the brutal Hathras rape case that culminated in the forcible cremation the victim’s body by the authorities, a new report by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) has brought to light the plight of women in this country. The latest data by the NCRB evidences that no state or city is really safe for women. In the year 2019 alone, 4,05,861 cases of crimes against women and 86 rapes were recorded each day in India.

Uttar Pradesh tops the list with 59,853 cases in the year followed by Rajasthan at 41,500 cases and Maharashtra at 37,144 cases of crimes against women. Rajasthan has witnessed a significant increase of 49.11% in cases from 2018 to 2019 and reports the highest rape cases in the country with an incidence of 5,997 and 6,051 victims. The rape capital Delhi recorded 12,902 cases of crimes against women while 6,519 cases were recorded in Mumbai. These include sexual assault, physical abuse, rape, harassment and kidnapping.

According to the NCRB report, “A total of 4,05,861 cases of crime against women were registered during 2019, showing an increase of 7.3% over 2018 (3,78,236 cases). Majority of cases under crime against women under IPC were registered under ‘cruelty by husband or his relatives’ (30.9%), followed by ‘assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty’ (21.8%), ‘kidnapping & abduction of women’ (17.9%) and ‘rape’ (7.9%). The crime rate registered per lakh women population is 62.4 in 2019 in comparison with 58.8 in 2018”.

And, these are just the cases that were reported. Many a times, women don’t even file a complaint and suffer in silence, but that’s another aspect of the terrible condition of women in this country that no one really cares about. Basically, instead of getting better, it is actually getting worse for women.

Also Read: Four Men Brutally Raped A Woman, Cut Her Tongue And Attempted To Kill Her. Today, She Died

The situation of Dalit women and girls is even worse across the country. 11% of the total 32,033 cases of rape reported in the year were from the Dalit community. We have witnessed two horrifying rape cases in the past week, both Dalit women gang-raped, tortured and murdered by the upper caste men who were defended and protected by the government and authorities. Both victims were hurriedly cremated to erase the evidence and their families were silenced. Rajasthan ranks highest in the rapes cases of Dalit women followed by Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.

The report also shows that Kolkata has recorded the least number of cases of sexual assault and no case of sexual harassment among the metropolitan cities in India. This is just relative data, which means as compared to the other metro cities, Kolkata fared slightly better when it comes to crimes against women.  But you can’t let this minor positive news fool you into believing Kolkata or the state is safe for women. It actually takes away from the fact that West Bengal is one of the most unsafe states in the country where domestic violence, sexual crimes and atrocities against women are actually on the rise and women are molested and harassed every day. Also, it could be because of the better police patrolling in Kolkata or because the crime data wasn’t even submitted to the NCRB by the West Bengal government, because that can happen in India NBD.

The stats for 2020 would be even worse since such crimes reportedly skyrocketed during the lockdown. India recorded a 10-year high in complaints against domestic violence in the lockdown. Every year, we break our own record. When will this stop?

The NCRB reports that every 16 minutes, a rape happens in India. Honestly, this doesn’t even shock me anymore. Aren’t we all witnessing it every day and fearing the day it would be us? Because it could be us. Earlier it was Nirbhaya, then Priyanka Reddy and then Manisha. There were millions of women before them and would be millions in the future if the law for such crimes isn’t stringent and swift. Every time a rape happens, it is only the women and families of little girls are scared, not these rapists.

Under the Indian law, the accused is given a chance of fair trial which take years even when he is proven guilty. This is the reason why the law fails to instil fear in the minds of the barbarians who think of committing such heinous crimes. Then there are political parties and minister who come in defence of such criminals and put the blame on women, their clothes, their lifestyle. The blame everything except the rapist. We not only need stricter law and serious punishment for such criminals but also sensible people in power. Is that too much to ask for?

Also Read: Rape. Domestic Abuse. Violence. The Crimes Against Women In Our Country Are Increasing At An Alarming Rate. Even The UN Is Worried

Anjali Agarwal

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