Progress faces a challenge

On November 14, 2008, a 27-year-old married woman of Pathakheda village in Raisen, a district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, was raped when she went out for work.

On the same day, a 19-year-old scheduled caste girl in Badwani, under the Kanad police station area, was raped by three youths of the Rampura Badwas village.

India has recorded a rise in the number of rape cases during the past five years with states such as Madhya Pradesh accounting for most of them.

According to the data compiled by the National Crime Records Bureau, 20,737 rape cases were registered in 2007 against 19,384 in 2006, 18,359 in 2005, 18,233 in 2004 and 15,847 in 2003. The data tabled in parliament showed that the maximum number of cases was registered in Madhya Pradesh — 3,010 rape cases in 2007 and 2,900 in 2006.

A report based on the state and police records tabled recently in the State Assembly throws light on such atrocities committed against women. Some believe the rise in the number of rape cases was due to the state provision of compensation — Rs50,000 (Dh3,965.28) for rape victims from scheduled castes or scheduled tribes (categories under the Indian government's system of reservations commonly referred to as SC/ST).

The government of Madhya Pradesh introduced a scheme in 1995 offering financial aid to SC/ST rape victims. The first instalment of Rs25,000 (Dh1,981.59) is to be paid after a medical examination and the victim gets another Rs25,000 after the court verdict.

Retired director-general of police S.C. Tripathi feels the compensation for SC/ST victims does not seem to be working well, as false complaints are being lodged for the money.

Prior to the introduction of the scheme, crimes against the communities were much lower. The number of cases being filed by members of the community is increasing every year. Police find themselves helpless. "We can't say anything. It has to be decided by the court. In some cases we see foul play by the victim for money," a police officer said.

The inspector-general of police of the state capital Bhopal, Shailendra Singh, believes there is every possibility of false complaints being lodged for a variety of reasons, whether to settle a score or for financial gain.

Aquil Khan, a lawyer who takes up such cases, said: "We have seen ‘fake' rapes mostly in rural areas either for compensation or to settle scores. Almost 3,300 rape cases were registered in Madhya Pradesh and most of the victims were [from the] SC/ST [communities]." The data reveals that 332 cases of rape were reported in the state between March and July. The majority of victims belong to SC/ST and Other Backward Classes (OBCs): 139 SC, 108 ST and 47 OBC.

Cases filed by SC/ST members, which are pending before court, pose another problem. In Madhya Pradesh only 29 per cent of the cases have been settled.

When Kala Bai charged Hanumant with raping her, she was immediately given a compensation of Rs25,000 and the accused was arrested. Bai, however, changed her statement in court. It also came to light that Bai and Hanumant were in love and that she had eloped with him. Bai said she had filed the complaint against Hanumant succumbing to pressure from her family.

There were several cases in the state in which the victims changed their statement in court and let the accused go scot-free.

Sachin Jain, convenor of the Right to Food campaign, said: "Victims are now coming forward to lodge complaints. Yet even today it is not easy to get a case registered." But Jain dismissed the allegation that women are registering cases for compensation. "For a woman, honour is the biggest thing. No woman can compromise her honour for the sake of money," he said.

Social activisit Vijaya Pathak is of the same view. She accepted the fact that there may be some cases where reports were lodged for the sake of compensation.

Pathak said: "There might be some cases in which rape cases are filed for financial gains or to settle personal scores but I believe atrocities against SC/ST women have risen in the past couple of years."

Amitabh Pandey, a lawyer dealing with criminal cases, said in some cases members of the upper class pressure the victims to change their statements. There are instances of women taking advantage of the government scheme for the sake of compensation.

Bhopal-based political analyst Girija Shankar says rape is the easiest way for the upper caste people to pressure the lower caste. In a backward state such as Madhya Pradesh, he says, rape is for the members of the upper caste a way to assert power rather than a means of sexual gratification.

Sandip Naik, who has worked with women in panchayats (village councils), is of the view that casteism and the feudal system play an important role in sustaining such attitudes. When the powerful have to exploit the powerless, rape is the easiest way. According to Naik, the influential sections of society loathe the fact that a large number of SC/ST women are improving their conditions by taking advantage of the opportunities provided by the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, self-help groups and the panchayats.

Pathak believes it is not only the trauma of the act that the women have to live with. It is the taboo associated with rape that adds to their woes, she said.

The victims, who are usually farm workers or employed in the panchayat, often suffer from rejection by society as village women often avoid interaction with rape victims, she added.

However, the state government plans to bring certain changes in the law so that rape accusations by SC/ST members for the sake of money can be stopped.

Names of the victims have been changed.

Shuriah Niazi is a freelance journalist based in central India.