India approves death penalty for child rapists
MEASURES FOR STRONGER PUNISHMENT, FASTER TRIALS STIPULATED
India’s cabinet yesterday approved the death penalty for rapists of girls below the age of 12, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held an emergency meeting in response to nationwide outrage in the wake of a series of cases.
The executive order, or ordinance, amends the criminal law to also include more drastic punishment for convicted rapists of girls below the age of 16, government officials said. The order will come into effect once it is signed by India’s president.
India launched fast-track courts and a tougher rape law that included the death penalty after a gruesome assault on a young woman shocked the country in 2012, but India’s rape epidemic has shown no sign of dying down.
There were 40,000 rapes reported in 2016. The victims
were children in 40 per cent of those cases. The latest outpouring of national revulsion came after details emerged of the gang rape of an eightyear-old Muslim girl.
With a general election due next year, Modi moved swiftly to remedy that negative perception by holding the emergency cabinet meeting as soon as he returned yesterday morning from an official visit to Europe.
The cabinet also prescribed measures for stronger punishment and faster trials in rape
cases, a government document seen by Reuters showed.
In cases of the rape of a girl below the age of 16, the cabinet increased the minimum punishment to 20 years from 10 years. The penalty for the rape of women was raised to 10 years from seven years.
The cabinet also recommended mandatory completion of rape investigations within two months and advised that trials should also be completed in two months.
The Union Cabinet yesterday approved an ordinance that provides for death penalty to those convicted of raping a child below the age of 12 and life term for raping a girl below age of 16.
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018, approved at cabinet meeting presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, seeks to provide effective deterrence against rape and instill a sense of security among women, particularly young girls in the country.
The government also decided to put in place a number of measures for speedy investigation and trial of rape cases including a two month time limit for investigation, two months for completion of trial and six months for disposal of appeals.
Fast-track courts
There will be no provision for anticipatory bail for a person accused of rape or gang rape of a girl under 16 years.
The Cabinet also decided to strengthen investigation and prosecution including setting up fast-track courts, and special forensic labs in each state besides maintaining a national database of sexual offenders.
The ordinance came in the wake of nationwide outrage over the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir, and other instances in different parts of the country including the rape of a nine-year-old girl in Surat.
Sources said the government has taken serious note of the rape incidents in the country and has decided on a comprehensive response to deal with the situation, with the ordinance approved in view of urgency and seriousness of the issue.
The ordinance also provides that court has to give notice of 15 days to Public Prosecutor and the representative of the victim before deciding bail applications in case of rape of a girl under 16 years of age.
New posts of public prosecutors will be created besides setting up related infrastructure in consultation with the states.