Just as the population is increasing, similarly, incidents of rape are increasing, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said here on Friday, in what could be construed as an attempt to correlate the two.
Participating in the discussions on the Governor’s address in the Assembly, Ms. Banerjee told members of the Opposition: “You are claiming that incidents of rape are increasing. The population is also increasing…”
“The population is increasing, the number of vehicles are increasing… our boys and girls are becoming more modern. This is one of the signs of change,” she said, adding that some newspapers are “deliberately” publishing misleading reports on the incidence of rape.
Contrasting the incidence of rape reported here with the country’s other metropolitan cities, Ms. Banerjee said Kolkata registered 38 incidents in 2011, while Delhi registered 453 cases, Mumbai 221 and Chennai 76. Till November 2012, 45 rape cases were reported here, while Delhi reported 621.
Stating that an increasing number of girls and women were coming forward to register complaints of rape in the State, Ms. Banerjee described this as a good sign for society and one that indicated heightened awareness.
“Earlier, women felt embarrassed to lodge complaints of rape. Media and NGOs have also helped in the process,” she said.
Addressing a public gathering in October 2012, Ms. Banerjee had accused the media of glorifying rape and had taken a dig at the modern permissive society stating that “now everything is done openly.” .
