Dowry deaths account for substantial share of female homicides in India: Report
United Nations, Nov 27 : Dowry deaths continue to account for a substantial share of all female homicides in India despite legislation prohibiting it, according to a UN study which says the home is the most dangerous place for women around the world.
Around 87,000 women were killed around the world last year and some 50,000 - or 58 per cent - were killed at the hands of intimate partners or family members. This amounts to some six women being killed every hour by people they know, according to new research published by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
In India the female homicide rate in 2016 was 2.8 per cent, higher than the rate in Kenya (2.6), Tanzania (2.5), Azerbaijan (1.8), Jordan (0.8) and Tajikistan (0.4). Further, in India 33.5 per cent of women and girls aged 15-49 who experienced physical violence (irrespective of perpetrator) at least once in their lifetime and 18.9 per cent in the past 12 months, according to data from 1995-2013.
Dowry-related deaths in India continue to be a matter of concern. The study noted that available data on dowry-related killings from the National Crime Records Bureau indicate that female dowry deaths account for 40 to 50 per cent of all female homicides recorded annually in India, representing a stable trend over the period 1999 to 2016.
"Despite legislation adopted by the Indian Government in 1961, prohibiting the payment of dowry, the practice continues throughout the country and dowry deaths continue to account for a substantial share of all female homicides," it said.
Sorcery accusations also affect some women living in countries in Africa, Asia and Oceania and can be the driver behind gender-related killings. Data from Papua New Guinea and India on homicide resulting from sorcery accusations show that, although in small proportions, this phenomenon still exists.
"While data are not sex disaggregated, it is likely that women account for a large share of the victims," it said.
The study, released for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, examines available homicide data to analyse the gender-related killing of women and girls, with a specific focus on intimate partner and family-related homicide and how this relates to the status and roles of women in society and the domestic sphere.
"While the vast majority of homicide victims are men, women continue to pay the highest price as a result of gender inequality, discrimination and negative stereotypes. They are also the most likely to be killed by intimate partners and family," UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov said.
"Targeted criminal justice responses are needed to prevent and end gender-related killings. UNODC is releasing this research for the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women 2018 to increase understanding and inform action."
Looking at the rate of female victims of homicide by intimate partners or family members, the study found that the global rate was around 1.3 victims per 100,000 female population.
In terms of geographical distribution, Africa and the Americas are the regions where women are most at risk of being killed by intimate partners or family members. In Africa, the rate was around 3.1 victims per 100,000 female population, while the rate in the Americas was 1.6 victims, in Oceania 1.3 and in Asia 0.9. The lowest rate was found in Europe, with 0.7 victims per 100,000 female population.
According to the study, tangible progress in protecting and saving the lives of female victims of intimate partner/family-related homicide has not been made in recent years, despite legislation and programmes developed to eradicate violence against women.
The conclusions highlight the need for effective crime prevention and criminal justice responses to violence against women that promote victim safety and empowerment while ensuring offender accountability. The study also calls for greater coordination between police and the justice system as well as health and social services and emphasizes the importance of involving men in the solution, including through early education.
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Madhu Kishwar booked over alleged misleading content on social media
Chandigarh (PTI): Academician Madhu Kishwar has been booked on charges of criminal defamation, promoting enmity and other offences by Chandigarh police following a complaint by a resident alleging circulation of forged and misleading content on social media.
A Chandigarh police team on Tuesday served notice to Kishwar in Delhi, asking her to join the investigation in the case.
Sarita Roy, the Station House Officer of Sector-19 police station in Chandigarh, where the FIR was filed, told reporters in the national capital that the notice was issued under Section 35(3) of the BNSS and that Kishwar has been asked to appear and present her side.
Kishwar and some other social media users have been booked under various sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including 196 (criminalises acts that promote enmity, hatred, or ill-will between groups based on religion, race, language), 336 (1) (forgery) and 356 (criminal defamation), and the IT Act, according to the FIR.
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They have also been charged under Section 353 (penalises making, publishing, or circulating false information that cause public mischief...) and those related to cheating and forgery under the BNS.
According to a statement by the Chandigarh police, a city-based complainant on April 19 alleged that some forged and misleading social media posts and video clips with obscene text and content were being circulated by various social media users, misidentifying the person in the video.
The complainant alleged that it is a deliberate act of creating a false electronic record using obscene words and phrases, having knowledge and sufficient reason to believe that the posts are misleading and false, with the intent to cause damage or injury.
The video, which circulated with the intent to cause harm to the reputation of a constitutional authority and to disturb public peace and tranquillity, should be investigated, and appropriate action should be taken, the complainant said.
The complainant said the person seen in the video is a travel vlogger whose wife regularly posts updates about their activities on social media. The original video was shared from her social media account.
"As per the statement of the woman, she disclosed that the person in the video shared from her account is her husband. Statements of her husband and another lady in the video have also been recorded during preliminary investigation," said the police statement, adding that further probe is underway.
Meanwhile, Kishwar, in a social media post, said that a Chandigarh police team had visited her late Monday night to serve her notice regarding the FIR registered against her.
"Since the law forbids the police to visit or arrest women after dark and before sunrise, I spoke on phone to the leader of the delegation. She told me that their team has come to serve notice regarding an FIR registered against me in Chandigarh. I insisted that they go by the law and come in the morning," she wrote on X.
