Karnataka sees 15 sexual harassment cases daily, conviction rates remain alarmingly low: Report
Bengaluru: Karnataka is grappling with a surge in sexual harassment cases, with an average of 15 cases reported daily in the first two months of 2025, sparking growing concerns over women’s safety in the state.
Data from the State Crime Records Bureau (SCRB), cited by The New Indian Express on Tuesday, reveals that 901 sexual harassment cases and 78 eve-teasing incidents were registered between January and February this year.
Despite the high number of reported incidents, conviction rates remain alarmingly low. In 2024, 6,319 sexual harassment cases were filed, yet only nine resulted in convictions. A staggering 3,908 cases are still under trial, 1,734 are under investigation, and 45 cases remain untraced.
Women’s rights activist K.S. Vimala, from Janawadi Mahila Sanghatane, has expressed concern that the actual number of such incidents could be much higher, as many cases go unreported due to social stigma, fear, and a lack of trust in the police and legal systems. “Even when women go to file complaints, police respond insensitively. Victims would be discouraged by asking why they were out at night or why they were alone,” TNIE report quoted Vimala as saying.
She also pointed out that women face risks not only at night but during the day as well. She called for increased police patrols and the installation of CCTV cameras in vulnerable areas as preventive measures.
Furthermore, Vimala criticised the State Women’s Commission for not doing enough to raise awareness and take proactive steps to improve women’s safety. She asserted that the low conviction rate sends the wrong message to society and called for more comprehensive action to combat sexual harassment in the state.
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Cong chief asks PM for special Parliament session to discuss Pahalgam attack
New Delhi (PTI): Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking him to convene a special session of Parliament to discuss the Pahalgam terror attack and demonstrate a collective resolve.
Several opposition MPs have made a similar demand to the government in the wake of the dastardly attack in which 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed last week, leaving the nation grief-stricken and outraged.
India has cited "cross-border linkages" to the horrific incident and promised severe punishment to those involved in the strike.
In a letter to the prime minister, Kharge said, "At this moment, when unity and solidarity is essential, the opposition believes that it is important to convene a special session of both Houses of Parliament at the earliest.
"This will be a powerful demonstration of our collective resolve and willpower to deal with the brutal terror attack in Pahalgam on innocent citizens on April 22. It is our fond hope that the session will be accordingly convened," the leader of opposition in the Rajya Sabha added.
The Congress president, however, had been unrelenting in his attack on PM Modi. At a party rally in Rajasthan on Monday, he lashed out at the prime minister for skipping the all-party meeting on the Pahalgam attack and accused the BJP of creating divisions in the country.
Kharge had said that in this hour of crisis, everyone wants to fight together, "but the BJP wants to spread venom and divide people".
Party general secretary, in-charge communications, Jairam Ramesh shared the letter on X and said, "Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge has written to the PM last night, requesting that a special session of both Houses of Parliament be convened at the earliest to demonstrate a collective will to deal with the situation arising out of the brutal terror attacks in Pahalgam on April 22."
