India: Kolkata rape reawakens rage over threats to women

People across India have been protesting for weeks over the rape and murder of a 31-year-old trainee doctor, which has once again drawn focus to threats that women face in the world's most populous country.

The young doctor was killed while on duty at a Kolkata hospital earlier this month. Medical workers were first to stage protests, but other people soon started joining the marches as anger spread across the nation.

"I am outraged because I feel women in this country are not treated as human beings and that no one wants to understand what women face every day," said Meghna Bhatia (name changed), who works as a consultant at an multinational corporation in Bangalore.

The suspected attacker had worked as a civic volunteer with the local police. He has been arrested and is currently in jail.

India's Supreme Court has already taken notice of the case. The three-judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Dhananjaya Y. Chandrachud, this week ordered the creation of a national task force to ensure the safety of doctors in the country.

It also directed the Health Ministry to set up an online portal so that stakeholders can submit their suggestions to the task force.

The judges warned that "the nation cannot wait for another rape and murder in order to bring in safety laws for medical professionals and doctors."

A moment of deja vu

The Kolkata case has reminded many of Jyoti Singh, now widely known as "Nirbhaya" (meaning: fearless) a physiotherapy student who was gang-raped and brutally beaten in a moving bus in India's capital city, New Delhi, in late 2012.

The 23-year-old lived long enough to identify her attackers but later died from her injuries.

Out of the six perpetrators, four were hanged, one was found dead in his cell, and the final one, who was a minor when the attack took place, was freed after spending three years in a reform home.

The Nirbhaya case shook India to the core. Thousands of people from all walks of life gathered in Delhi demanding justice for Singh.

The prolonged protests, some of the biggest in India's history, were monumental in steering the discourse on sexual violence and women's safety in the country.

This year will mark the 12th anniversary of the Nirbhaya case. But many Indians see the recent rape and murder of the doctor in Kolkata as a harsh reminder that very little has changed since the Nirbhaya movement.

What did Nirbhaya movement achieve?

The New Delhi rape and murder pushed Indian officials to create a committee tasked with amending the laws concerning rape and sexual violence. The body came to be known as the Verma Committee, as it was headed by former Chief Justice J.S. Verma.

Under its recommendation, the definition of rape was expanded and stiffer sentences for rape were introduced. It also criminalized other offences like voyeurism, acid attacks and stalking.

Among other things, the amended laws mandated quicker trials in cases of rape.

The Verma Committee also recommended that police should be trained appropriately to deal with sexual offenses.

"Right from childhood years, children ought to be sensitized to respect women," a Supreme Court judge said in 2017, adding that gender equality "should be made a part of the school curriculum."

In 2013, the Indian government also created the Nirbhaya Fund, which can be used for providing infrastructure to ensure women's safety in public spaces, setting up helplines, and providing survivors of sexual violence with medical and legal aid. However, the fund remains underutilized.

Stricter sentencing backfires

Under current laws, repeat rapists and rapists who target girls under 12 face the death penalty in India.

Yet despite harsher sentences, recent years have also seen a rise in crimes against women, with government records showing a staggering 19% increase between 2020 and 2022.

Every high-profile case since 2012 has seen parts of the public call for the death penalty against the perpetrators, with the assumption that strict punishments will serve as a deterrent.

But some activists warn that harsh punishments don't always work as intended. Women's rights activist Kavita Krishnan told DW that legal changes have actually "led to low conviction rates."

"The amended law of enhanced sentences has backfired," she said.

The conviction rate for violence against women stands at just 27%, according to official data.

The evidence often falls short of the judiciary's standard, and this, combined with severe punishments prescribed by the law, has made judges hesitant to convict, Krishnan said.

Death penalty as a distraction

Some legal experts also argue that insisting on the death penalty for rapists can serve as a smoke screen for deeper problems in India's society.

"The only purpose death penalty serves is that it distracts the public from seeking answers and accountability from the state," Vrinda Grover, a senior Supreme Court lawyer said.

Grover warns that "law by itself will not stop the crime," and notes that the police should be trained to investigate such crimes professionally while prosecutors should make sure to shed their bias and prejudice against women.

Is impunity culture making a comeback?

In the days following the Kolkata incident, reports of high-profile rape convicts like Asaram Bapu and Gurmeet Ram Raheem, both of whom are self-styled godmen, getting parole were also making the rounds on social media.

Last year, India saw protests by women wrestlers alleging sexual harassment by the chief of Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Olympic medalist Sakshi Malik quit the sport and returned her medals after Singh's close aide was elected as the new chief of WFI.

In the western state of Gujarat, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party is in power, an early release was granted to 11 rape convicts who participated in the gang rape of Bilkis Bano during the 2002 communal riots in the state. The convicts were garlanded by members of right-wing groups upon their release, but the Supreme Court eventually ordered them to resume serving their life sentences.

"The political response to incidents of violence against women has got worse," Krishnan said.

"Back in 2012, the government at least felt pressured to take action. Now, government indifference has sort of become a norm," she added.

"There is a sense of political impunity that has set in."

Edited by: Darko Janjevic