Thank the good lord for small mercies, the empowered group of minsters in all it's collective wisdom has taken the bold decision of lowering the age of consent to 16 years from the present 18 and uphold the definition of 'rape' as a crime against women........
Conforming to the recommendations made by the Justice J.S. Verma committee, the group of ministers also decided to stick their necks out and include first time offences like voyeurism, stalking and public disrobing of a woman within the ambit of the new draft of the proposed bill, the group of ministers also adressed the concern of bleeding hearts by severely restricting the scope for misuse of the bill by segregating rape from the other sexual offences.......
Voyeurism will now be a bailable offence, while stalking or following a woman without her approval or consent and disrobing a woman in public shall be non bailable offences , the bill will be put up for approval before the cabinet on Thursday, March 14, 2013 and the cabinet approval is now being considered nothing more than a mere formality.......
The real test of the government will be during the course of the all party meeting slated for Monday March 18, 2013 and both houses of parliament subsequent to the all party meeting, informed sources within government circles have already hinted at the strident disapproval of the two parties supporting or propping up the government from outside namely the Samajwadi and Bahujan Samaj Party........
While, the principal opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata party is already on record about certain provisions of the proposed law being a little too draconian, strident and forward looking in it's opinion; "the proposed law seems to be an attempt to usher in modernistic Scandinavian sexual tendencies and behaviours in a largely medieval and patriarchal society," as a senior party leader acerbically remarked........
With the cards stacked against it, astute political and floor management on the part of the government is a given, the most adroit course of action for the government will be to assuage the concerns of both the Bharatiya Janata Party as well as left parties with regard to the contents and provisions of the new revamped Anti Rape Law and get all these parties on board in order to ensure the smooth passage of this eagerly awaited legislation through both houses of parliament.......
Failure of the government to do so will only result in a prolonged logjam and mutual recrimination and the women of the country certainly do not want the bill being put in cold storage and taking the long and cumbersome select committee route, or then do they???????
Conforming to the recommendations made by the Justice J.S. Verma committee, the group of ministers also decided to stick their necks out and include first time offences like voyeurism, stalking and public disrobing of a woman within the ambit of the new draft of the proposed bill, the group of ministers also adressed the concern of bleeding hearts by severely restricting the scope for misuse of the bill by segregating rape from the other sexual offences.......
Voyeurism will now be a bailable offence, while stalking or following a woman without her approval or consent and disrobing a woman in public shall be non bailable offences , the bill will be put up for approval before the cabinet on Thursday, March 14, 2013 and the cabinet approval is now being considered nothing more than a mere formality.......
The real test of the government will be during the course of the all party meeting slated for Monday March 18, 2013 and both houses of parliament subsequent to the all party meeting, informed sources within government circles have already hinted at the strident disapproval of the two parties supporting or propping up the government from outside namely the Samajwadi and Bahujan Samaj Party........
While, the principal opposition party, the Bharatiya Janata party is already on record about certain provisions of the proposed law being a little too draconian, strident and forward looking in it's opinion; "the proposed law seems to be an attempt to usher in modernistic Scandinavian sexual tendencies and behaviours in a largely medieval and patriarchal society," as a senior party leader acerbically remarked........
With the cards stacked against it, astute political and floor management on the part of the government is a given, the most adroit course of action for the government will be to assuage the concerns of both the Bharatiya Janata Party as well as left parties with regard to the contents and provisions of the new revamped Anti Rape Law and get all these parties on board in order to ensure the smooth passage of this eagerly awaited legislation through both houses of parliament.......
Failure of the government to do so will only result in a prolonged logjam and mutual recrimination and the women of the country certainly do not want the bill being put in cold storage and taking the long and cumbersome select committee route, or then do they???????
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