Crime Against Women

Rajasthan Police will launch specialised women-led patrolling units next week to enhance the safety of women and children in public spaces, officials said. The Kalika Patrolling Units will be distinctively identifiable by their blue uniforms with neon monograms, they said. Malini Agrawal, Additional Director General (Civil Rights), said the initiative will begin with 250 teams, each consisting of four female officers. The plan includes expanding the program to 500 teams, with Jaipur receiving 35 units initially, and each District Commissionerate receiving 10 units. The squads will operate under the supervision of senior female officers. Subsequently, 20 units will be deployed in Kota, 12 in Udaipur, 10 in Jodhpur and 10 each in Ajmer and Bhilwara. "The decision to form these patrolling units was driven by frequent complaints of eve-teasing and harassment in public spaces. Female constables and head constables will patrol these areas on scooters," Agrawal said. The teams will use

Afghan women detained under the Taliban's anti-begging laws describe horrific abuse, including rape and forced labor, after being arrested for begging to feed their children

Hema Committee was formed in response to a 2017 sexual assault case involving an actor and submitted its report to the Chief Minister on December 31, 2019

Experiences of violence lead to long-lasting physical and mental health impacts on the survivors, including injury, unintended pregnancy and pregnancy related complications, WHO's Saima Wazed said

Senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday claimed that crimes like the rape and murder of the woman medic of R G Kar hospital can be effectively stopped only when West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee ceases to be at the helm in coming days. Adhikari, the Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, made this assertion while campaigning for the BJP candidate at Taldangra assembly seat in Bankura district, where by-poll will take place on November 13 along with five other constituencies across the state. "Shocking incidents of brutalisation of women are reported regularly in West Bengal. The police are turning a blind eye. This can end only when Mamata Banerjee ceases to be the CM," Adhikari said. A large number of people are demanding a quick and comprehensive justice for the RG Kar hospital victim, and it would have been better had the trial taken place outside the state, he said. The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to transfer the trial of the R G Kar rape and murd

Agitating junior doctors in West Bengal continued their fast-unto-death for the third consecutive day on Monday, demanding justice for the rape and murder of a woman medic of the RG Kar hospital and workplace safety even as the state government remained silent to address their issues. Six junior medics have been on the fast-onto-death since Saturday evening and later one more joined them. "Our fast-unto-death protest is on. We have not received any message from the state government. We will continue this until all our demands are met. No external pressure will be able to move us from our path of protest seeking justice for our deceased sister... It's now or never," Aniket Mahato, a junior doctor, told PTI. Mahato of RG Kar hospital joined Snigdha Hazra, Tanaya Panja and Anustup Mukhopadhyay of Kolkata medical college, Arnab Mukhopadhyay of SSKM hospital, Pulastha Acharya of NRS medical college and Sayantani Ghosh Hazra of KPC medical college for the fast-unto-death protest. The jun

Junior doctors on Saturday rejoined their duties partially at various government-run hospitals in West Bengal after a hiatus of 42 days. They were on 'cease work' in protest against the rape-murder of an on-duty woman doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. While they returned to essential and emergency services at all state-run hospitals, the doctors continued to refrain from working in the outpatient departments (OPDs). "We have started rejoining duties today. Our colleagues are returning to their respective departments for essential and emergency services, but not at the OPDs. This is only a partial resumption of duties," said Aniket Mahato, one of the protesting doctors. Aniket, along with colleagues Lahri Sarkar and Raktim Majumder, even operated on a woman patient at the hospital. He said some of their peers had already left for flood-hit areas of the state to set up 'Abhaya clinics' (medical camps), underscoring their commitment to public health despite ongoing ...

Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo on Saturday said the recent "sexual assault" incident at Bharatpur Police Station was being "politicised" and asserted that those found guilty would not be spared. Speaking to reporters, he said the BJP government in the state has already suspended five police personnel for their alleged involvement in the incident. "The incident is being politicised... It is due to the BJP that former chief minister Naveen Patnaik emerged from his house and issued a media statement after 24 years," Singh Deo said. Patnaik had on Friday demanded a court-monitored SIT probe and a judicial inquiry into the alleged sexual assault of an army officer's fiance in Bharatpur Police Station on September 15. Any person found guilty during the investigation would "not be spared and stringent action would be taken against them", Singh Deo said. The BJD government has left the police in such a situation...The previous government had constituted several judic

The Congress on Saturday questioned the "silence" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah over the alleged sexual assault on an Army officer's fiancee in police custody in Odisha and other incidents of crime against women in BJP-ruled states. Congress leader Ajoy Kumar said in Odisha, some men misbehaved with the daughter of an Army brigadier, who is also the fiancee of an Army captain, and when she went to a "model police station" to get a complaint lodged, she and her fiance were brutally beaten up. "Then a fake case is made and the victim and her companion are taken into custody. In this case, an Army officer writes a letter to a high court judge, saying 'give us justice'. But Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh are silent in this entire matter," Kumar said at a joint press conference with the chairman of the All India Congress Committee's (AICC's) ex-servicemen department, Colonel (retired) Rohit Chaudhry. In Indore, Madhya Pradesh, Army officers

The West Bengal Medical Council (WBMC) on Thursday cancelled the registration of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital's former principal Sandip Ghosh, an official said. Ghosh, who is in CBI custody, has been removed from the list of Registered Medical Practitioners maintained by the WBMC, he said. His licence was cancelled under various provisions of the Bengal Medical Act of 1914, the official said. He is an orthopaedic surgeon and without the licence, he cannot practice. Ghosh was arrested by the CBI on September 2 for his alleged involvement in the financial irregularities at the hospital amid the protests over the rape and murder of the on-duty trainee doctor. He was later accused of evidence tampering in the rape-murder case. Aniket Mahato, one of the leading faces of the junior doctors who have been agitating over the death of their colleague, described it as a "victory". "This is a victory for our deceased sister. The cancellation of Ghosh's medical registration should have

Agitating junior doctors on Thursday alleged that decorators were removing tents, bamboo shafts and pedestal fans from the protest site in front of Swasthya Bhawan after they were allegedly pressurised by the police to do so. The police, however, denied these allegations as baseless. The agitating doctors said that around midnight, decorators, who had themselves donated tarpaulin, beds, tents and pedestal fans, were seen removing those from the sit-in site outside the state health department headquarters in Salt Lake. A junior doctor claimed that there was confusion when decorators began opening the tents, but they were assured that these items would be replaced soon. "All arrangements for the sit-in are being funded by the public. Some decorators volunteered to provide us with tents, fans, bamboo shafts, and makeshift beds. When we contacted them about why they were taking down the items, they said they would replace these soon as they needed to use these items for making Durga Pu

The West Bengal government officials and the agitating junior doctors are presently finalising the draft minutes of the meeting to address the RG Kar hospital impasse on Monday night, according to sources. After four unsuccessful bids to initiate a dialogue to resolve the more than a month-long deadlock, a delegation of 35 agitating junior doctors arrived at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's Kalighat residence for the crucial talks at 6.20 pm. The meeting, which was originally scheduled at 5 pm, began around 6:50 pm.

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday announced that the state government would pay a compensation of Rs two lakh to the families of each of the 29 people who died allegedly after not getting treatment due to the ongoing 'cease work' of agitating junior doctors. "It is sad and unfortunate that we have lost 29 precious lives due to disruption in health services because of long-drawn cease work by junior doctors," Banerjee posted on X. "In order to extend a helping hand to the bereaved families, state government announces a token financial relief of Rs 2 lakh to family members of each deceased person," she added. The junior doctors have been on 'cease work' since August 9 when the body of an on-duty postgraduate trainee was found in state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital. She was allegedly raped and murdered.

A Delhi court is likely to resume hearing in sexual harassment case by female wrestlers against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on September 23. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Priyanka Rajpoot, who was scheduled to record the statement of one of the complainants on Thursday, adjourned the matter after being informed that the wrestler could not appear before the court today. The court on May 10 ordered framing of sexual harassment and other charges against the BJP MP and former WFI chief in a case lodged by six female wrestlers, observing there was "sufficient evidence" against him. It had directed framing of charges against Singh, a six-time Lok Sabha MP, under IPC sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354A (sexual harassment) and 506 (criminal intimidation). The judge later on May 21 framed the charges after Singh pleaded not-guilty.

People from all walks of life - former students of several educational institutions, clay modellers, rickshaw pullers and junior doctors separately hit the streets of Kolkata on Sunday in continued protest over the rape and murder of a medic in a state-run hospital a month ago. Demanding the arrest of all culprits in the case, the mother of the post-graduate trainee whose body was found in RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9 said she had one child and now all the protesting medics are her children. In south Kolkata, around 4,000 former students of over 40 schools, a large number of them women, walked a distance of 2 km demanding justice for the victim. The former students of various ages chanted 'We Want Justice' as they walked along Rash Behari Avenue to the crossing of Shyamaprasad Mukherjee Road from Gariahat. Ex-students of institutes like Binodini Girls School, Mitra Institution, Garfa High School, Carmel High School and St John's Diocesan took part in the ...

Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Friday questioned the West Bengal government for establishing fast track special courts in only five to six districts to deliver swift justice for crimes against women. He said only recently, the state has sent fresh proposals to set up such courts in more districts. Talking to reporters here on the sidelines of an event, the minister said the rape-murder of a woman doctor in Kolkata was shameful. He said mistakes have been pointed out in the action taken after the incident, which even was tardy. "Matter came to the Supreme Court. Then (West Bengal Chief Minister) Mamata Banerjee wrote a letter about the need for fast track courts. The scheme (for fast track special courts) already exists," he pointed out. He said except for five-six districts, the courts were not set up (in West Bengal). "Now their proposals have been received for some districts. People of Bengal, doctors across the country are agitated about the incident. "The attitude o

As many 572 tribal girl students and women have become victims of rape during the last five years in Odisha, the SC-ST Development Minister Nityananda Gond told state Assembly on Friday. In a written reply to a query by Congress legislator Tara Prasad Bahinipati, Gond said the 572 tribal girls had become victims of rape under Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, during the past five years. Out of the 572 rape cases, trials have been completed in 32 cases, while chargesheets have been filed in 509 cases, he said. Gond said that another 31 cases are under investigation.

Amid ongoing protests demanding justice for the young doctor who was allegedly raped and murdered at state-run RG Kar hospital last month, West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Thursday criticised the state administration for its handling of the situation. Bose remarked that the West Bengal government is "going from wrong to wrong," emphasising that the public's lack of trust in the system has led to the recent massive protests. He said, "What I see in West Bengal today, especially in administration, is going from wrong to wrong. They should realise that two wrongs, even if they are mutually contradictory, will not constitute one right. (The) government has to act and has to take people into confidence. Punishment should be given." He further observed that the people of Bengal no longer feel they can expect justice from the government, a sentiment reflected in the widespread protests, including a candlelight procession held late into the night on Wednesday. "People should feel tha

A woman who says she was drugged by her now ex-husband so that she could be raped by other men while she was unconscious is expected to testify Thursday before a panel of French judges on her decade-long ordeal. Her former spouse, Dominique Plicot, now 71, and 50 other men are standing trial on charges of rape and face up to 20 years in prison. The trial started on Monday in the southern city of Avignon and is expected to run until December. Gisle Plicot and her husband of 50 years were living in their family home in a small town in Provence with their three children. But in late 2020, her world collapsed. A security agent caught her husband taking photos of women's crotches in a supermarket, leading investigators to search Dominique Plicot's phone and computer, where they found thousands of photographs and videos of men appearing to rape his then-wife, Gisle, in their home while she appears to be unconscious. The Associated Press doesn't generally identify victims of sexual abuse

The draft of the anti-rape Bill, scheduled to be tabled by the Mamata Banerjee government in the West Bengal Assembly on Tuesday, proposes capital punishment for persons convicted of rape if their actions result in the victim's death or cause her to become vegetative. Additionally, the draft stated that persons convicted of rape and gang-rape would receive a life sentence lasting for the rest of their natural lives. Titled 'Aparajita Woman and Child Bill, (West Bengal Criminal Laws and Amendment) Bill 2024,' the legislation aims to enhance protection for women and children by amending and introducing new provisions related to rape and sexual offences. The draft Bill proposes to amend the newly passed Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 laws and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act 2012 "in their application to the state of West Bengal to enhance punishment and to constitute the framework for...expeditious investigation and trial of th