Unwrapping incest rape: DCW gives probe guidelines to HC

Task Necessitated As Kin Often Turn Hostile During Trial

Everyone knows incestual rape is a heinous crime, but none in the family is comfortable talking about it, forget complaining to police. Things may improve as the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) has presented to the Delhi High Court an elaborate set of guidelines on investigation into these cases and rehabilitation of the victims.

The guidelines, which were framed by DCW in consultation with judicial officers, public prosecutors, doctors, police officers, bureaucrats representing social welfare, law and order, education and health, as well as community workers, social help groups and crises intervention centres, were presented to the HC by advocate Aparna Bhat.

The HC had entrusted the task to DCW as it learnt of high acquittal rate in incest rape cases, mainly because of the family members turning hostile during the trial to avoid social condemnation.

The Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), which guides police investigation and trial proceedings, does not distinguish between rape and incestual rape, the latter varying greatly in circumstances in which a victim finds herself. If in a rape case, the victim — especially a child — finds solace in family support, it is virtually absent, rather against the victim, in an incest case, says Bhat.

The efforts of the HC Bench comprising Chief Justice A P Shaha and Justice S Muralidhar to formulate a special procedure for handling incest cases, both by the police and the trial courts, appear to have been driven by the number of incidents reported in Delhi alone in the year 2006.

According to National Crime Reports Bureau (NCRB) figures, Delhi topped the chart of incest cases among cities reporting 26 of the total 60 cases in 2006. In the break-up of 431 total incest rape cases reported in the country in 2006, Chhattisgarh has the highest number of incidents (97), followed by Jharkhand (94), Rajasthan (42), Maharashtra (36), Madhya Pradesh (29), Kerala (28), Gujarat (16), Assam (12) and Haryana (10).

In the DCW initiative to pierce the veil of secrecy created by the family members of the victim to avoid bad publicity, all the participants agreed that investigation had a prime role to play in bringing the accused to book.

A specially trained woman police officer should be present in all police stations and she alone should be incharge of the case to question and examine the victim and her family members, the DCW suggested.

‘‘The statement of the victim must be recorded in private in incest cases and the presence of family members should not be allowed as they may pressure the victim to change her statement or give a wrong version of the facts,'' it said, adding the victim be immediately medically examined after recording of her statement.

The victim should be kept in rehabilitation centres and family members could be allowed to meet her only in the presence of the staff of the shelter home and care should be taken to prevent them from influencing or coercing her to change her statement, DCW said.

Giving the woman police officer 30 days to complete investigation to file the chargesheet, the DCW also suggested that the trial be carried out on a day-to-day basis presided over by more experienced additional sessions judges.

‘‘Most participants agreed that the courtroom experience has been called the second assault, as she (the victim) may have to face the rapist in the courtroom and may face hostile questioning of a very personal and intimidating nature in a very public setting,'' the commission said.

To avoid this, DCW suggested: ‘‘All proceedings should be conducted in-camera and appropriate measures should be taken to ensure that the victim is not confronted with the accused. In all incest cases, there should be provision for video-conferencing to eliminate the victim's personal cross-examination by the accused.''

WHAT THE GUIDELINES SAY

A specially trained woman police officer should be present in all police stations and she alone should be incharge of the case to question and examine the victim and her family members.

The victim should be kept in rehabilitation centre and family members would be allowed to meet her only in the presence of the staff of the shelter home and care should be taken to prevent them from influencing or coercing her to change her statement

Trial should be carried out on a day-to-day basis presided over by more experienced additional sessions judges

All proceedings should be conducted in-camera and appropriate measures should be taken to ensure that the victim is not confronted with the accused .

In all incest cases, there should be provision for video-conferencing to eliminate the victim's personal cross-examination by the accused.

The Times of India 31th October 2008 P. 7 New Delhi
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