By I C Naik
Recently a division bench of Justice Naresh Patil and Justice V L Achliya of the Bombay High Court was hearing a petition filed by a 34-year-old Dahisar resident reportedly alleging the Bombay Police Inaction(!) and refusal to have her statement recorded by a female police officer.
“When the victim is a woman, the new law provides for stringent rules on how her statement has to be recorded by the police,” recalled the judges. “In light of the rules, are there a sufficient number of women police officers attached to police stations in the state? In the absence of it, what are the steps being taken to recruit adequate women police officers?” the Hon. High Court persisted.
On August 17, 2013, the young lady Complainant was reportedly “abused, beaten and molested” by three residents of her building as she was parking her car.
Readers of www.indiancooperative.com would recall a report that “In Mumbai, there are thousands of cooperative societies and it is necessary to prepare mandatory guidelines for the safety of women in housing societies as laid in the Vishaka case” A dahisar coopertaive society resident had urged the Bombay High Court just a few days’ back.
As per the lady’s Advocate “the police initially registered a case of criminal intimidation, a bailable offence. It was only after she moved higher-ups that the police, in October, applied the newly introduced Section 354 B of the Indian Penal Code that deals with criminal force or assault on a woman with the intent to disrobe her. The punishment, if convicted, is a jail term of not less than three years and up to seven years. The prosecutor said the three accused had been arrested and a charge sheet filed.
The Report recalled the Rules framed post the Nirbhaya case to help women file complaints regarding sexual offences, assault and criminal intimidation:
1. A victim’s statement will be recorded by a woman police officer
2. Legal assistance will be provided to a victim
3. If a victim is temporarily or permanently physically or mentally disabled, her statement will be recorded at her residence or a convenient place in the presence of a special educator or interpreter and Police can video graph recording of the statement
4. Police will get the statement recorded before a magistrate
5. If police or any authority fails in their duty to record a victim’s statement properly, then the concerned official can be punished with a jail term of not less than six months and a maximum of two years.