Death penalty for child rape may not mean better justice, data shows

About 90 per cent of child rape cases were pending trial in India in 2016, no more than 28 per cent of such cases ended in conviction, and there is a 20-year backlog in bringing cases to trial, the latest available national crime data show.

These data indicate the government move to prioritise a change to legislation that allows courts to grant the death penalty will not bring quicker or better justice because there is no plan to address conviction failures and court delays.

No more than 28 per cent of child rapes registered end in convictions, and there is a 20-year backlog of child-sex-abuse related court cases, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), but the government has decided to add further legislation, permitting courts to grant the death penalty to those convicted of raping children below 12 years of age.

The new ordinance also adds a minimum punishment of 20 years to anyone who rapes a woman below 16.

Of 39,068 rape victims–including women and girls–in 2016, 43 per cent (16,863) of the girls raped were minor, below the age of 18, while, 5 per cent (2,116) were less than 12 years old, according to NCRB data.

 

The union cabinet on April 21, 2018, approved an ordinance to the Indian Penal Code, Indian Evidence Act, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), allowing for harsher punishments to those committing sexual crimes against women and children. An ordinance is promulgated by the President of India when the union cabinet so recommends and used when Parliament is out of session to quickly pass legislation deemed urgent.

The amendments, known as the Criminal Law Ordinance 2018, come during a period of national uproar. April 2018 was a month where the high-profile rape cases of eight-year-old Asifa in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district, and the alleged rape of a minor in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh, allegedly by a BJP MLA, dominated the national media and fuelled much politicised debate along religious and ethnic lines.

Reporting may be deterred, rather than rape

There were 19,765 reported child rapes in India in 2016, or 54 every day, under section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and section 4 and 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act–an increase of almost 6% compared to 2014 when 18,661 cases were reported.

 

Reported Cases of Child Rapes, 2012-16
Child Rape Cases Reported	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Sec 376 of Indian Penal Code	8541	12363	13766	10854
Sec 4 of POCSO Act			4131	6723
Sec 6 of POCSO Act			764	2077
Total	8541	12363	18661	19654	19765

Source: National Crime Records Bureau
Note: Child rape cases in 2016 have been recorded under section 376 of the IPC and section 4 & 6 of the POCSO Act. In 2014 and 2015, these cases were recorded separately under IPC crimes and POCSO Act, and we have included them for comparison. Cases reported in 2012 and 2013 were only under section 376 of the IPC.

Madhya Pradesh reported the most 13 per cent (2,467) child rapes nationwide in 2016, followed by Maharashtra (12 per cent, 2,292 cases) and Uttar Pradesh (11 per cent, 2,115 cases).

Sikkim reported the highest rate of rape, 32.5 rapes per 100,000 children, followed by Mizoram (26.7) and Delhi (14.5), as against the national average of 4.4 child rapes.

About 18-20 per cent of child rapes occur in the family and 50 per cent in an institutionalized setting, according to this 2013 paper published in the journal Psychological Studies.

Offenders were known to the victims–including both women and girl child–in 94 per cent of the rape cases reported in 2016, NCRB data show. Most of them (29 per cent) were neighbours, followed by ‘known persons on promise to marry the victim’ (27 per cent) and relatives (6 per cent); 30 per cent were other known people.

The introduction of a death penalty for those accused of raping a child under 12 years could have a negative effect on reporting, as families fear ostracization and legal consequence for family members.

“The introduction of the death penalty is not a great move. In the family these cases will not be reported, so many of these things happen by known people, the community will protect them,” Flavia Agnes, a women’s’ rights lawyer and co-founder of MAJLIS, a Mumbai-based organisation that provides legal initiatives for women, told IndiaSpend.

“Reporting rates were definitely increasing, but now I believe more people will not report (rapes) for fear of the consequences,” she said.

Conviction delays and a 72 per cent failure rate

Up to 90% of rape cases reported are pending trial at the end of 2016.

The conviction rate for child rape was 28 per cent–inclusive of cases reported under section 376 of IPC and section 4 and 6 of POCSO Act–in 2016, compared to 34 per cent in the previous year under section 376 of IPC, and 41 per cent and 32 per cent under section 4 and 6 of the POCSO act in 2015 respectively.

“Expedited trials are just not happening in India, it will take 20-30 years to improve the system,” said Ms Agnes. “Just one or two special courts is not enough; this is why so many cases are pending. Plus trials take too long.”

Six fast-track courts were set up in Delhi in 2013 after the gang rape of a 23-year-old paramedic student, to address the high rate of unfinished investigations and encourage swifter convictions. However, in 2012, regular courts resolved 500 cases compared to 400 in fast track courts, which failed to serve their inherent purpose, Business Standard reported on December 14, 2014.

The last person to receive capital punishment in India for reasons other than terrorism was Dhananjoy Chatterjee who raped and murdered 14-year-old schoolgirl. Chatterjee was hanged in August 2004.

 

 

 

Amendments to Indian Penal Code (IPC), Section 376:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

• Minimum punishment for rape has increased from seven to ten years imprisonment, as per an amendment to subsection (a)
• A new sub-clause (iii) states that the minimum punishment for rape of a woman under 16 years is 20 years imprisonment
• Subsection (c) has been amended to include a provision for fines imposed on the convicted and paid to the victim in order to cover medical costs and rehabilitation
• Newly inserted clause 376 AB states minimum punishment for rape of a woman under 12 years is 20 years imprisonment, plus courts can also grant the death penalty
• Minimum punishment of life imprisonment for the gang rape of women under 12 and 16 years has beer prescribed under the newly inserted clauses (376DA and DB); courts can also grant the death penalty for rape of under 12 year olds
• Police officers convicted of committing rape now face minimum imprisonment of ten years, no matter where the crime was convicted, as per an amendment to clause (ii) (a)

 

Amendment to Code of Criminal Procedure

 

 

 

 

 

• Rape case investigations must be completed within three months of the date when the crime was first recorded in the police station, as per amendment to Section 173 (i)
• All appeals to rape cases should now be disposed of within 6 months, as per amendment to Section 374 (3)
• No anticipatory bail can be given to those accused of raping under 16 year olds, according to a new subsection added to Section 439
• A person accused of raping an under 16 year old may have an informant/approved person present during a bail application hearing, according to a new subsection added to Section 439

 
 

 

Amendment to POCSO Act and Evidence Act

 

 

 

 

• Section 42 of the POSCO Act has been amended to include the amendments to section 376AB, section 376DA, and section 376DB of the Indian Penal Code.
• The same IPC sections have been added to Section 53A and 146 of the Evidence Act which addresses character evidence or previous sexual experience not relevant in certain cases

Source: Live Law

 

 

Reprinted with permission from IndiaSpend.org, a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit organisation