(Special on 8th March International Women’s Day)
India is a country where special care is taken of the safety and respect of women. If we talk about the twenty-first century, then women here are working shoulder to shoulder with men in every field. Now the Parliament of India has also passed a bill for 33 percent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabhas. Due to this, the role of women in Indian politics will become more important in the coming times. Women in the country are now being deployed on important posts in the army as well. Which is a big step towards women empowerment.
Here women have equal rights as men. Women represent half the population of the country and are also equal partners in development. In today’s era, women are not only at par with men but have gone two steps ahead of them. Society without women cannot even be imagined. According to the Indian Constitution, women also have the right to live a life equal to that of men. In India, women are seen as goddesses. It is said that where women are worshipped, gods reside there. Since ancient times, women are given special respect and honour in the society here.
International Women’s Day is celebrated every year on 8 March 1911 all over the world. The purpose of which is to celebrate the social, cultural, economic and political achievements of women. The theme of International Women’s Day 2025 is “Accelerating action”. The 2025 theme of the year will be rights, equality, empowerment for all women and girls. Which highlights the need for inclusion and immediate action to break down systemic barriers that prevent the progress of women and girls globally.
According to the latest data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), a total of 4,05,861 crimes were registered against women in India in the year 2023. These crimes include serious crimes like rape, molestation, dowry harassment, domestic violence, sexual harassment, cybercrime, and kidnapping. Among these, the highest number of cases have come to the fore of domestic violence and sexual harassment. Which shows our indifference towards the safety of women in society. Earlier, 4,45,256 cases were registered in 2022, 4,28,278 cases in 2021 and 3,71,503 cases in 2020. According to NCRB data, the rate of crime against women per one lakh population was recorded at 66.4 percent.
The rate of filing chargesheet in such cases was 75.8 percent. NCRB said that the highest 31.4 percent crimes against women under the Indian Penal Code were of cruelty by the husband or his relatives. This was followed by 19.2 percent cases of kidnapping, 18.7 percent of attacks on women with the intent to outrage their modesty and 7.1 percent of rape. According to the NCRB, of all the cases reported in the country last year, 2,23,635 i.e. 50 percent were registered in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. Uttar Pradesh registered 56,083 cases of crime against women in 2021 and 49,385 in 2020. This was followed by Rajasthan (40,738 and 34,535), Maharashtra (39,526 and 31,954), West Bengal (35,884 and 36,439) and Madhya Pradesh (30,673 and 25,640).
Over the years, many laws related to women’s safety have been made in India. These include Hindu Widow Remarriage Act 1856, Indian Penal Code 1860, Maternity Benefit Act 1861, Christian Marriage Act 1872, Married Women Property Act 1874, Child Marriage Act 1929, Special Marriage Act 1954, Hindu Marriage Act 1955, Foreign Marriage Act 1969, Indian Divorce Act 1969, Muslim Women Protection Act 1986, National Commission for Women Act 1990, Sexual Harassment of Women at Working Place Act 2013 etc. Apart from this, Lok Sabha on 7 May 2015 and Rajya Sabha on 22 December 2015 have also made changes in the Juvenile Justice Bill. Under this, if a teenager between 16 and 18 years is found involved in a heinous crime, then there is a provision for severe punishment for him.
According to the data released by the National Commission for Women, Uttar Pradesh was at the forefront in the case of crime against women in 2023. According to the data released by the National Commission for Women, 28,811 complaints of crime against women were received from across the country throughout the year. In this, more than 16 thousand cases have come from the state of Uttar Pradesh. The figures are surprising. Because this complaint has been registered in the commission under the Right to Dignity category. After this, 2,411 cases were registered in the national capital Delhi at number two. 1,343 cases have been registered in Maharashtra, 1,312 in Bihar and 1,165 in Madhya Pradesh.
In this report released 12 months after 2023, crimes like dowry harassment and rape have been registered in the crimes against women. This report of the National Commission for Women shows the indifference of the police towards women. According to the data, 805 cases of sexual harassment, 605 cases of cyber crime, 472 cases of stalking and 409 complaints against honor related crimes were registered across the country. According to the data, rape cases are also included in crimes against women. In the year 2023, 1,537 cases of rape and attempted rape were registered. After this, 8,540 cases were registered under the right to dignity, 6,274 of domestic violence, 4,797 of dowry harassment, 2,349 of molestation, and 1,618 cases of police indifference towards women.
Cases of crime against women have decreased in 2023 as compared to 2022. In 2022, 30,864 cases of crime against women were registered. Whereas in 2023 this number came down to 28,278. This is a positive sign but still a lot remains to be done. There has been a decrease in the number of complaints since the year 2022. When 30,864 complaints were received, which was the highest figure since 2014. As far as the safety of women is concerned, in the last few years India has made many arrangements for the safety of women with unprecedented decisions. Today women in India are safer than before. On the one hand, we are taking women forward by giving them equal status in every field. On the other hand, incidents of atrocities against them are also increasing continuously. Every day we get to hear incidents of rape and misbehavior with women. Such incidents give a setback to the campaign of women empowerment.
The responsibility of changing the deteriorating environment towards women in the country is not only of the government but also of every common man. We all have to come forward and support women in the fight for women’s safety, only then the mother power of the country will be able to walk with pride by raising their heads. Now women have to understand that their pitiable condition in the society today is the result of the traditions prevailing in the society. Women themselves will have to take the initiative to change these traditions. Only then will the society’s thinking towards them change.
(The author is a freelance journalist recognized by the Rajasthan government.)
