SC seeks Centre's reply on plea for pan-India guidelines for providing safe environment for women

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court agreed on Monday to examine a plea seeking direction for framing pan-India guidelines to provide a safe environment for women, children and transgender persons in society.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan issued notice to different ministries of the Centre and its instrumentalities and posted the matter for further hearing in January.

Senior advocate Mahalakshmi Pawani, appearing for the petitioner Supreme Court Women Lawyers Association, said several incidents of sexual abuse against women are taking place in smaller cities, which are going unreported and pushed under the carpet.

"After the RG Kar Medical College Hospital incident of Kolkata where a trainee doctor was raped and murdered, around 95 incidents of sexual violence have taken place but were not highlighted," Pavani said, adding that like Scandinavian countries, offenders should get punishments such as chemical castration.

The bench said it will not entertain many of the prayers mentioned in the petition as they are "barbaric" and "harsh" but there are some issues that are very innovative and need to be examined.

Justice Surya Kant said the question of maintaining proper behaviour in public transport is one of the issues worth consideration and awareness needs to be created on how one should behave in buses, metros and trains.

The do's and don'ts in public utility vehicles need to be publicised, he said.

"The issue of proper social behaviour in public transport should not only be taught but needs to be implemented strictly as there were some inappropriate incidents reported from airlines also," the bench said.

Pavani pointed out that Monday is the anniversary of the horrific 2012 Nirbhaya case, where a 23-year-old female physiotherapy intern was gang-raped and assaulted in a bus. The victim subsequently died.

She said although guidelines have been issued in many cases and there are stringent laws and punishments, are they being implemented?

The bench said it needs to be seen "where we are lacking in implementation of punitive and penal laws". It directed that notice be issued to ministries and its instrumentalities concerned through the office of the Attorney General.

"We appreciate you seeking relief for the common woman, who faces struggle in day-to-day life," Justice Surya Kant said.

The association is seeking pan-India guidelines, reforms and measures for the protection of women.