The Delhi High Court today sought the assistance of Delhi Police Commissioner Amulya Patnaik on several aspects pertaining to formulation of a mechanism to deal with the issue of safety of women in the national capital.
It said it wanted to know from the police chief aspects relating to shortage of manpower in the force.
"We are seeking his (police commissioner) assistance to know the feasibility of creating a special cell to monitor all cases of crime against women since their inception, including registration of FIR and filing of charge sheet," a bench of justices S Ravindra Bhat and Sanjeev Sachdeva.
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The bench said the special cell may also keep a watch on vulnerable areas where such crimes frequently occur and ensure that adequate police force is deployed there.
The court said it was of the opinion that for effective assistance in the proceedings, the police commissioner be present before it on December 11, the next date of hearing.
Special commissioner of police or joint commissioner of police, as the police commissioner deems appropriate, be also present in the court, it said.
"The police commissioner may consider these aspects while appearing in the court on December 11 and indicate the possible plan," the bench said.
The court's directions came during the hearing of a PIL initiated by it in 2012 after the December 16, 2012 gangrape of a young woman in a moving bus. The victim later succumbed to injuries inflicted on her by the rapists.
The court was also unhappy over the central government not arriving at a decision on whether to sanction more police personnel for Delhi with the issue pending before the finance ministry since July 2015 after the home ministry cleared it.
During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain produced letters addressed to the finance secretary and secretary (expenditure). He said the proposal of 12,528 additional posts for the Delhi Police was sent to the finance secretary for approval.
To this, the bench asked the government to take the issue on "warfooting" and spend some extra time, hold a series of meetings and finish of the matter.
It said in last three years, several meetings have taken place at the government level but no solution has come up.
"Similar exercises were conducted twice in the past where one ministry or department would not receive concurrence.
"Departments should consider the possibility and make an appropriate order to ensure that those portions which are acceptable are passed and implemented so that the Delhi Police posts are augmented," it said.
Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal, who was present during the hearing, broke down while narrating the ordeal of several minor girls who were raped in the national capital after which they had to undergo surgeries.
On being asked by the court as to how many child rapes took place in Delhi in last one year, she said around 1,000.
Meanwhile, advocate Meera Bhatia, an amicus curiae in the matter, submitted that the deputy commissioners of police of each distict in Delhi should gear up in their own areas as they have the list of bad elements of their jurisdiction.
The bench had earlier said the Centre was playing "snakes and ladders" on the issue of increasing the number of police personnel in Delhi even though the metropolis is "clearly not safe", while taking note of recent rape of an 11-month girl.
The court has been from time to time issuing directions to the police, Delhi government and Centre on the issues of augmenting the police force, bettering forensic labs and expediting testing of samples besides ensuring compensation to victims of sexual offences.
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