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New Delhi, January 24, 2013 (PPI-OT): In a major fillip to the ongoing demand for revocation of the draconian Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA) from Jammu and Kashmir and Northeastern states of India, Justice J S Verma committee has strongly recommended the need to bring sexual offences by armed forces and uniformed men under ordinary criminal law.
The Justice J S Verma committee, headed by former Chief Justice of India, Justice JS Verma was set up by the Indian government to look into laws for sexual crimes following recent gang rape of a young girl in Delhi.
The three-member panel that also includes Justice (retired) Leila Seth and senior advocate Gopal Subramaniam has suggested that the armed forces, including paramilitary forces, should be brought under the purview of a common law while operating in conflict zones. “This, the panel felt is necessary to check the cases of women being sexually exploited,” the committee said.
“Sexual offences by armed forces and uniformed men in conflict areas should be brought under ordinary criminal law,” the committee added. Referring to the relevant parts of the report while releasing it, Subramaniam, said; “There’s an imminent need to review the continuance of AFSPA in areas as soon as possible,” and added, “Mechanisms need to be put in place to take action against military and paramilitary forces in conflict zones.”
He further said that panel had noticed the “impunity of systematic sexual violence” that was being legitimized by AFSPA and that measures to ensure the security and dignity of women would have a long-term impact. “General law relating to detention of women must also be strictly followed,” he said.
The Commission completed its review of existing laws and prepared its report within a tough 30-day deadline. The Commission said it received 80,000 suggestions from India and abroad after they set January 5 as a deadline for receiving comments from the public to revamp existing legislation to deal with sex offenders.
Pertinently, Kashmir Centre for Social and Developmental Studies (KCSDS) chairperson Prof Hameeda Nayeem had deposed before Justice Verma Commission in New Delhi recently “informing it about the incidents of rape and sexual violence that have taken place in the last two decades in Jammu and Kashmir.”
“She portrayed a whole context in which civilian space has been taken over by military which has shrunk the space for citizens in the state,” a statement issued by KCSDS had said. The panel recommended a comprehensive law for violence against women, addressing even mild sexual harassment and registering every complaint of rape. It said law enforcement agencies must not become tools in the hands of political masters.
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