The much touted, tom tommed, eagerly anticipated and supposedly stringent anti rape law has failed to have any salutary or detrimental effect on wannabe rapists as one has just received extremely disturbing and heart rending reports about a 16 year old girl having allegedly been gang raped earlier today in the National Capital Region.......
A much watered down and almost toothless version of the anti rape law was passed by the house of elders yesterday afternoon after prolonged and extended deliberations; while no one can deny the fact that our politicians especially the male politicians chose to conveniently bypass over 80% of the recommendations made by the Justice J.S. Verma committee at the twin altars of political expediency and maintaining the hegemony of an archaic and decaying patriarchal system, the long awaited law is however not without its pluses and other noteworthy attributes......
This law which will now replace the existing anti-rape ordinance passed by the government of the day in February does provide for capital punishment if the act of rape or sexual assault either results in the death of the victim or then leaves her severely disabled or in a vegetative state for the rest of her natural life.......
It also accords rape the status of a gender specific law and belatedly recognises the fact that only a woman can be at the receiving end of the heinous and inhuman act and not vice versa; as senior Bharatiya Janata Party Venkaiah Naidu succinctly remarked,"I am yet to come across a single incident of a woman raping a man in my forty odd years of public life though I read about and come across numerous such crimes being perpetrated by males on a daily basis,"..........
Status quo has been maintained in the case of the minimum age of/for sexual consent, i.e. 18 continues to remain the minimum prescribed act for initiating consensual sex under the provisions of this new law and also sticks with the amendments made to the provisions or sections pertaining to the crimes of voyeurism and stalking by the members of the Lok Sabha.........
Like it, hate it, venerate it or abhor it, the fact of the matter is that we have to live with this law no matter whatever shape. size and form it has come to acquire, I was one of the teeming millions crying themselves hoarse demanding a stringent law that would ensure and sanctify the safety and security of women, I know that this law is far from satisfactory and definitely biased in favour of the abuser instead of the hapless victim.....
But, as noted human rights activist and advocate Vrinda Grover pithily remarked, "we can either keep nit picking about the aims and provisions of the law in it's present form or then accept it as a necessary evil and get on with the more serious business of exerting relentless pressure on the powers that be so that our valid concerns about the safety and security of womenfolk are assuaged and addressed," I for one have made peace with this law and renewed my efforts to keep up the relentless pressure on the government, what about you????
A much watered down and almost toothless version of the anti rape law was passed by the house of elders yesterday afternoon after prolonged and extended deliberations; while no one can deny the fact that our politicians especially the male politicians chose to conveniently bypass over 80% of the recommendations made by the Justice J.S. Verma committee at the twin altars of political expediency and maintaining the hegemony of an archaic and decaying patriarchal system, the long awaited law is however not without its pluses and other noteworthy attributes......
This law which will now replace the existing anti-rape ordinance passed by the government of the day in February does provide for capital punishment if the act of rape or sexual assault either results in the death of the victim or then leaves her severely disabled or in a vegetative state for the rest of her natural life.......
It also accords rape the status of a gender specific law and belatedly recognises the fact that only a woman can be at the receiving end of the heinous and inhuman act and not vice versa; as senior Bharatiya Janata Party Venkaiah Naidu succinctly remarked,"I am yet to come across a single incident of a woman raping a man in my forty odd years of public life though I read about and come across numerous such crimes being perpetrated by males on a daily basis,"..........
Status quo has been maintained in the case of the minimum age of/for sexual consent, i.e. 18 continues to remain the minimum prescribed act for initiating consensual sex under the provisions of this new law and also sticks with the amendments made to the provisions or sections pertaining to the crimes of voyeurism and stalking by the members of the Lok Sabha.........
Like it, hate it, venerate it or abhor it, the fact of the matter is that we have to live with this law no matter whatever shape. size and form it has come to acquire, I was one of the teeming millions crying themselves hoarse demanding a stringent law that would ensure and sanctify the safety and security of women, I know that this law is far from satisfactory and definitely biased in favour of the abuser instead of the hapless victim.....
But, as noted human rights activist and advocate Vrinda Grover pithily remarked, "we can either keep nit picking about the aims and provisions of the law in it's present form or then accept it as a necessary evil and get on with the more serious business of exerting relentless pressure on the powers that be so that our valid concerns about the safety and security of womenfolk are assuaged and addressed," I for one have made peace with this law and renewed my efforts to keep up the relentless pressure on the government, what about you????
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