New Delhi. ‘Nirbhaya rape case’ is about to complete 13 years. On the dark night of 16 December 2012, Nirbhaya was gang-raped in a moving bus. The gangrape incident of Nirbhaya had shocked the entire country. The soul of the country was shaken by this incident. After the Nirbhaya incident, not only did the social perspective on crimes against women in India change, but the law book was also completely changed. After protests across the country, the Supreme Court changed the definition of looking, staring and touching girls.
The Central Government had passed the ‘Criminal Laws (Amendment) Act, 2013’ implementing the recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee. Now, when the Indian Civil Code (BNS) has replaced the IPC, this law has become stronger. After the Nirbhaya incident, the Supreme Court has decided in many of its decisions what should be the limits of ‘looking’, ‘staring’ and ‘touching’. Let us know to what extent your behavior or your eyes should be when you see girls in train, bus, metro, school and college.
definition of rape changed
After the Nirbhaya incident, there were revolutionary changes in the definition of rape in the country. Before 2012, the definition of rape was quite limited. But after the Nirbhaya case, the law made it clear that rape does not only mean ‘penetrative sex’. Now if a man inserts any part of his body or any object like a bottle, finger or other item into the private parts, mouth, urethra or anus of a woman without her consent, then it will be considered rape.
Girl’s ‘agreement’ means ‘no’
Girls have now got many types of legal empowerment. Now, instead of limiting physical intercourse to sexual relations, ‘digital penetration’ and other violent acts have also been included in the serious category. The Supreme Court has adopted a very strict stance regarding consent between young boys and girls. According to the new law, consent means a voluntary and explicit agreement. If the woman is not protesting, it does not mean that she has given consent. Silence cannot be considered consent. The court has also made it clear that even if the woman or girl has had a previous relationship with the woman or is a sex worker, the act done without her consent will still be called rape.
Staring at girls or taking photos surreptitiously
After the Nirbhaya incident, two new sections were added, which are very important even today. Stalking and voyeurism. Voyeurism: If a man watches or photographs a woman when she is doing personal work like changing clothes or bathing and he hopes that no one is watching him, then it is a crime.
stalking
If a man repeatedly stalks or tries to contact a woman even when she has said no or monitors her internet/social media usage, it would be considered ‘stalking’. In this case, if you are caught for the first time, there is a provision of punishment of up to 3 years and for the second time, there is a punishment of up to 5 years.
‘Skin-to-skin touch’
The Supreme Court gave a historic ruling, overturning a controversial decision of the Bombay High Court in the case of touching women. The High Court had said that if there is no ‘skin-to-skin’ contact then it will not be considered as sexual harassment. But the Supreme Court rejected this and said that the ‘sexual intention’ of the criminal is important and not the skin contact. If a person touches a woman or a girl even over her clothes with wrong intentions, he will be considered a criminal under POCSO or molestation sections.
New boundaries of sexual harassment
According to the Indian Justice Code and the directions of the Supreme Court, making obscene comments on a woman, showing her obscene films or photographs, demanding sexual intercourse or forcibly touching her comes under the category of ‘sexual harassment’. The court has made it clear that the dignity of women and their bodily autonomy is paramount. The ‘Vishakha Guidelines’ have been further strengthened regarding harassment at the workplace.
Overall, after the Nirbhaya incident in the country, the new law does not leave any ‘loophole’ for the criminals. This journey that started after Nirbhaya is now at a stage where the will of the woman is the basis of the law. Police and courts have been instructed to adopt a policy of zero tolerance in such cases. It is important for the society to know that what they consider as ‘minor molestation’ is a cognizable offense in the eyes of law which can lead to years of imprisonment.
