Demanding stringent action against those sexually abusing women and girl children, the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) and other organisations have decided to go on a padayatra from Dindigul to Fort St. George and meet Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin.
Speaking to reporters, former MLA and senior CPI (M) leader Balabharathi on Friday said the complaints from girl students and women were on the rise in the State. Only in very few cases, the accused had been convicted. The lackadaisical attitude of the official machinery was largely responsible for the increase in crimes against women.
The courts were also lenient in granting bails to the accused. As a result, the victims were under constant threat, and in many crimes, the delay in action had given room for the accused to give the police the slip.
In Dindigul district, 500 cases had been registered over the last nine years and only in 21 cases, the accused had been convicted. In as many as 187 cases, the accused were either got off scot-free or were on bail.
Pachalur incident
In a recent incident where a 12-year-old girl died under mysterious circumstances at Pachalur, near Kodaikanal, the police were yet to arrest the accused. Only after the AIDWA and others intensified their stir, did the DGP order a CB-CID probe into the case, she added.
The delay in handling the cases encouraged the accused to indulge in more crimes. Many women ended their lives unable to tolerate the humiliation or were forced to stay silent, Ms. Balabharathi said.
To draw Mr. Stalin’s attention to the issue, the AIDWA, the Vidiyal Women Organisation and others plan to march to Chennai by the end of January and submit a petition seeking his personal attention. The courts and judicial officers in Dindigul district should also be sensitised to the need for quick action in cases related to crimes against women and girl children, she added.
