Editorial: Horror at Hampi

NEW DELHI: It’s a poor advertisement for India’s tourism sector if a rape and murder occur within sight of a UNESCO World Heritage site. Yet, such incidents occur all too frequently, showing up the lip service we pay to the safety of both tourists and women in general.

The latest case of sexual violence against a foreign tourist occurred in Hampi on the night of March 6. An Israeli tourist, her American companion, her homestay host and two other Indian tourists were allegedly attacked by three men while out stargazing near the Sanapur Lake. The American and the two Indians were pushed into the Tungabhadra canal and the Israeli and her homestay host, a woman, were allegedly gangraped. Two of the men thrown into the canal managed to swim to safety but a 26-year-old tourist from Odisha, Bibash Nayak, drowned. His body was recovered the next morning.

The incident has been widely condemned as a heinous crime and the government of Karnataka has been quick to react, all too conscious that it might provide ammunition to the opposition to criticise the law-and-order situation in the state. Acting in short order, the police have arrested three suspects in connection with the crime, including one from Tamil Nadu.

The incident is sure to have a significant impact on tourism in Hampi, with many foreign visitors leaving the area due to safety concerns. Homestay operators are now wary of government actions following the incident. The entire local tourism ecosystem has been damaged for many months to come.

While alert administrative action is welcome, the authorities’ response needs to go beyond detaining suspects and compensating victims. All too often, the police follow unconvincing extra-judicial tactics in the aftermath of a rape just to assuage popular anger rather than to follow proper investigative protocols. As we saw after the rape of a Spanish tourist in Jharkhand in 2023, the police and the administration hasten to produce suspects, rush through the investigation and try to appease the befuddled victims with what amounts to a buyout.

This is a typical symptomatic response that does nothing to inspire confidence in tourists nor change the international perception that India is not a safe destination for unaccompanied women tourists. What is needed is a broader approach to make women visitors’ safety a high priority within the tourism policy of the Centre as well as the state governments. It would be useful to study the best practices followed in this respect internationally.

To start with, it would be good to get all components of the tourist system­—including the sites, the hotels, transporters, guides and local communities—invested in an authentic and audited safety certification system. These stakeholders could act as go-to resources for any tourist for help in a crisis and advice on health, hygiene matters and safe practices.

Another idea worth adopting is specialized tourist police units. States like Goa and Rajasthan already have partial systems, but other states have approached it indifferently, either treating it as an extension of the security guard system in vogue at banks or seconding regular policemen to patrol beaches and the like. What’s needed is a specialised force trained in safe practices, anti-harassment protocols and GPS-enabled patrolling.

Tourism is the largest service industry in India, contributing 4.6 per cent to the GDP and giving livelihood sustenance to millions. Safety of tourists, especially women visitors, ought to be a serious enough priority for India.