Friday, 17 May, 2024
By: Yash Gupte
Premoday Khakha is accused of repeatedly raping and sexually assaulting the child multiple times between November 2020 and January 2021. Image Source: IANS
Following a letter from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Premoday Khakha was fired from his position as deputy director of the Women and Child Development Department prior to his arrest.
A day after a senior Delhi government official was taken into custody for allegedly raping and impregnating a 16-year-old girl and his wife who was detained for allegedly providing the girl abortion pills has been jailed, according to the police. According to Sagar Singh Kalsi, Deputy Commissioner of Police (North), Premoday Khakha, the suspect, would be presented before the court on Tuesday, while his wife Seema Rani was presented before the court on Monday and placed in judicial custody. Khakha is accused of repeatedly raping and sexually assaulting the child multiple times between November 2020 and January 2021. In an effort to avoid capture, Khakha, who is accused of repeatedly raping the kid, was observed attempting to flee with his wife. Premoday Khakha was driven out of a residential property on Monday morning, just hours before his arrest, as per the CCTV footage accessed by the media.
The child, who lives with her mother, informed investigators that when her father passed away in October 2020 as a result of Covid-19, Khakha, whom she called to as "Mama (maternal uncle)", took her to his home in Burari. A senior police officer familiar with the case's developments stated that her mother had believed that moving in with Khakha's two kids would help her cope with the sadness of losing her father at such a tender age.
According to the police, the child began experiencing anxiety episodes from July- August this year, which also had an impact on her academic performance. On August 7, her mother brought her to a city hospital, where she received counselling. During her numerous counselling sessions, she accused Khakha and about five to six random people of sexual assault. She disclosed the alleged rape and subsequent abortion to the counsellor. On the evening of August 12, the counsellor notified the police of the incident.
Following a letter from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Premoday Khakha was fired from his position as deputy director of the Women and Child Development Department prior to his arrest.
According to DCP Kalsi, on August 13 at the Burari police station, a complaint of rape, molestation, criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy, causing harm, inducing a miscarriage without consent, criminal conspiracy, common intention, and under the Pocso Act was filed.
The rape of a minor in Delhi has once again brought the crimes committed against women in to light. The rise in crime against women despite of number of legal provisions and safeguards shows that women are one of the most vulnerable sections of the society. The chart below depicts the statistics of crime against women in India.
Source: National Crime Records Bureau
The data shows that there is an increase in the crime against women as compared to the previous years. There has been a constant increase in crimes against women in India as in the year 2017, 3,59,849 number of crimes were registered against women and this number sharply increased to 4,05,861 in 2019. The crimes against women witnessed a fall in the year 2020 as the number of crimes stood at 3,71,503 as compared to the previous year’s 4,05,861.The reason for the dip was the covid-19 pandemic and the nationwide lockdowns imposed to curtail the spread of the virus and the pandemic. But, post pandemic, in 2021 the number of crimes against women was 4,28,278. This was the highest number of crimes against women reported till date. The crime against women in India increased by around 15.3 percent in 2021.
Majority of cases under crime against women were registered under ‘Cruelty by Husband or His Relatives’ (31.8 percent) followed by ‘Assault on Women with Intent to Outrage her Modesty’ (20.8 percent), ‘Kidnapping & Abduction of Women’ (17.6 percent) and ‘Rape’ (7.4 percent). The crime rate registered per lakh women population is 64.5 percent in 2021 as opposed to 56.5 percent in 2020.”
Source: National Crime Records Bureau
Domestic violence cases, also including abuse caused by economic dependency, have been spiraling year after year. This is how bad it is: one in three women faces physical, emotional or sexual violence from intimate partners. Out of 4.28 lakh crimes against women, 1.36 lakh cases across India were registered under 'cruelty by husband or his relatives' in 2021.
West Bengal reported the highest number of cases of cruelty against women by spouses or their relatives in 2021. West Bengal was followed by Uttar Pradesh where 18,375 such cases were recorded, and Rajasthan where 16,949 cases were registered. Among metropolitan cities, Delhi reported most cases of such violence at 4,674. In Kolkata, the figure stood at 841, much below those of Hyderabad (1,678), Jaipur (1,200) and Lucknow (1,101).
The data clearly shows that as soon as the life came to a normal post pandemic, the crime was not an exception. In India, in spite of constitutional and legal safeguards, the crimes against women are on a rise. Gender Disparity is one of the deep rooted causes of violence against women. Though government measures and legal measures are necessary for the protection of women, the society in general also needs to understand this and contribute in safeguarding women from crime.
