Union Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi Thursday took state representatives and central bureaucrats to task, in the presence of Home Minister Rajnath Singh, over rising number of sexual assault cases in children's shelter homes.
Speaking at the launch of a national registry of sex offenders, Gandhi pulled up representatives of those states which did not respond to a letter sent by her ministry on procurement of 'rape kits', a specially-designed kit which helps carry out immediate medical investigation into sexual assault cases.
How many rape kits have been procured so far? she asked the officials at the function, which was attended by Union Ministers of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, Hansraj Gangaram Ahir, Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba and top officials of the ministries of home and women and child development. Top police and civil officers of the states attended the event via video conferencing.
"Twenty to 30 per cent of sexual assaults take place in shelter homes. In Muzaffarpur in Bihar, the head of a shelter home allegedly sexually assaulted several children, but he was not arrested immediately. There was a tunnel from the shelter home to his house, that means the crimes must have taken place in his residence. I appeal to all DGPs to keep a close eye on all shelter homes," she said.
Stating that not a single state responded to the letter sent by her ministry on the issue of procurement of 'rape kits', Maneka said, "Every police station should have at least three rape kits. But not a single state has responded to our letter and informed how many such kits were procured (by them)."
Responding to Gandhi, Joint Secretary of the Home Ministry Punya Salila Srivastava said as many as 79 lakh rape kits were in the process of procurement and distribution across the country.
The kits were being procured with financial support under the Nirbhaya Fund, which was named after the 2012 Delhi gang-rape victim. The kit comprises essential items which aid in furnishing evidence such as blood and semen samples in sexual assault and rape cases.
These kits also contain instructions on collection of evidence from the crime scene. The kit would be sent to the closest lab and within two months the results would be out.
Flagging the increasing incidents of abandonment of brides by NRIs and foreign grooms, Gandhi said initially there was an impression that such incidents took place only in Punjab which was incorrect.
"Such incidents take place across the country. We have reports of eight to ten cases everyday where a foreigner comes (here), weds a woman, uses her for a week and then abandons her. Such women are neither married, nor widows. Please keep an eye on such incidents and take action and ensure cancellation of the passports of such men," she said.
In his speech, the Union Home Minister said the task of creating an emergency response support system on a national level based on the helpline number 112 is rapidly progressing and that the safe city project has been approved in eight cities.
He said works are apace for a national mission for better synergy on the issue of women's safety among central ministries, states and other stakeholders. "This mission will play an active role in setting up 1,023 fast track courts," Singh said.
"Today, we are moving forward in the issue of female security through the national database on sexual offenders and the cybercrime reporting portals. We have made a separate division in MHA, prioritising women's safety," he said and exuded confidence that these online tools will help nail criminals.
Earlier in the day, the home minister launched two separate portals to strengthen women's safety. The National Database on Sexual Offenders (NDSO), which is accessible only to law enforcement agencies, will assist in effective tracking and investigation of cases of sexual offences.
The portal 'cybercrime.gov.in' will receive complaints from citizens on objectionable online content related to child pornography, child sexual abuse and sexually explicit material such as rape.
The NDSO is a central database of sexual offenders in the country which will be maintained by the National Crime Record Bureau.
The database is accessible only to the law enforcement agencies for investigation and monitoring purpose. The database will include offenders convicted under charges of rape, gang rape, POCSO and eve teasing.
The Cyber Crime Prevention Against Women and Children (CCPWC) portal will enable complainants to report cases without disclosing their identity.
Union Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba highlighted the need for time-bound completion of investigation in sexual crimes to deter potential offenders.
While appreciating the progress made by Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh police, he said MHA will monitor progress in all the states and added that the two portals will be extremely helpful to the law enforcement agencies especially in investigation where offenders migrate to other states after committing crimes.
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