Kolkata: Mamata Banerjee Urges Modi for Tougher Laws on Rape, Citing Doctor’s Murder in Kolkata

KOLKATA: In an impassioned letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has reiterated stringent central legislation with exemplary penalties for heinous crimes like rape and rape-murder. This is the second letter that Mamata Banerjee has written to the Prime Minister. On August 9, an inhuman incident-an unidentified rapist bludgeoning an on-duty junior woman doctor to death-took place at Kolkata's RG Kar Hospital.

Expressing her deep concern over no response to her first letter dated August 22, Banerjee said, "You may kindly recall my letter No.44-CM dated August 22, 2024, regarding the need for stringent central legislation on incidents of rape and meting out exemplary punishment to perpetrators of such crimes. No reply was received from your end on such a sensitive issue.".

While the Chief Minister indeed got a reply from the Union Minister of Women and Child Development, Annapurna Devi, she expressed dissatisfaction and said the reply did not match the gravity of the issue: "I am of the thought that the seriousness of the subject and its relevance to society have not been adequately appreciated while sending out this generic reply," Banerjee said.

Banerjee then drew the attention of the bench to the drastic steps already taken by West Bengal in combating such crimes. While the state has already sanctioned 10 exclusive POCSO Courts, 88 Fast Track Special Courts and 62 POCSO-designated courts are functioning with state funding. She, however, said the courts remain in the domain of the judiciary regarding monitoring and disposal of cases. The Chief Minister also called upon the Centre to revisit the present policy requiring only retired judicial officers to head the FTSCs.

She cited the gravity of such cases and demanded that permanent judicial officers be appointed in those courts, stating that it was an issue to be addressed at the national level.

Banerjee had also brought to the fore helpline services run by her state quite efficiently: 112, 1098, and Dial-100 are used vastly in case of an emergency.

"I would re-iterate and fervently appeal to you to kindly consider a stringent central legislation with exemplary punishment on heinous crimes of rape/rape and murder with mandatory provision for disposal of the cases within a specified timeframe by the trial authorities," Ms Banerjee concluded, while urging the Prime Minister to give due and serious attention to the matter.

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