State governments need to strengthen the investigation wings of the police and also the forensic laboratories to speed up investigation of crime against women, Chief Justice of High Court of Delhi Justice G. Rohini said.
Speaking at the inaugural of a one-day seminar on ‘Crimes against women, causes and solutions’ organised by the Visakhapatnam Bar Association and Dr. B R Ambedkar College of Law of Andhra University here on Saturday, she said the lack of infrastructure needed for investigation was hampering the speedy disposal of cases. There were not enough forensic laboratories and even those in existence did not have adequate kits for testing in the evidence in crimes against women.
There has been a rise in brutality in crime against women, she pointed out and said that crimes against women were a violation of the basic rights of the women to equality enshrined in the Constitution. The depravity shown by perpetrators was due to an easy access to alcohol and drugs, she said and urged the Government to take steps to control the flow of such addictive substances.
Casual approachThe delay in disposal of cases in family courts was mainly due to the casual approach of the members of the Bar to such cases, Subash Reddy, Judge of the High Court of Judicature in Hyderabad for State of Telangana and State of Andhra Pradesh and portfolio judge of Visakhapatnam Justice, said. “Most cases of domestic violence are brought in by victims who are in their youth and the delay in family courts and the High Court result in their losing prime years of their life in litigation.”
The perpetrators of crimes against women and children don’t deserve any sympathy and the judicial officers should be very firm in dealing with such cases, he said.
Visakhapatnam Bar Association president M. Badrinath, Principal District Sessions Judge Jayasurya, Vice-Chancellor of Andhra University G.S.N. Raju, AU Law College principal A. Subrahmanyam, Bar Association members were present.
