Crime against women along with general crimes is on the rise in Manipur, according to a report by Women Action Development (WAD) as the state recorded a total of 148 cases of crimes against women in 2021. The report based on recorded data from published news also witnessed a spike in cases of rape in the same year.

The Manipur State Commission for Women (MSCW) also registered as many as 83 cases of crimes against women in the year 2021, and received the highest number of domestic violence cases.

According to data made available by the MSCW, Women News Horizon, the commission registered 70 cases for women during the period from September 1 to August 31, 2021. Of the total, six cases have been closed, 63 are under proceedings and one case is kept in abeyance. The commission registered 25 cases of domestic violence, one bigamy, 10 women property rights and maintenance, five desertions, five fraud, 17 harassment (workplace/mental and physical), four matrimonial disputes, one rape, one cyber-crime, and one ‘other’ case.

Imphal West has the highest crime rate of 31 cases followed by Imphal East and Bishnupur with the crime rate of 15 and eight cases respectively. Tengnoupal recorded the lowest crime rate of one. Thoubal recorded a crime rate of six, while Kakching and Churachandpur recorded a similar crime rate of four, according to the comission report.

Community-wise, most of the crimes happened among the ‘general’ category community and ‘schedule tribes’. The ‘general’ community accounted for a crime rate of 45 cases while the ‘scheduled tribe’ accounted for a crime rate of 16 cases. Scheduled Caste and Muslim accounted for the crime rates of two and seven respectively while other communities accounted for a crime rate of three.

However, according to data compiled by the Women Action for Development (WAD) from published news of 2021, 148 cases of crime against women took place in Manipur. Among all cases of crime against women, rape has the highest number with 31 cases. District wise, Imphal West district has reported the highest with 39 cases of crime against women, followed by Thoubal district and Imphal East with 29 and 28 cases respectively.

Based on the data, after rape, comes missing cases with 24 cases, 23 assault, 10 suspicious death, three gang rape, eight murder, five suicide, five molestation, four cybercrime, three life attempt, two delivery death, one assault with delivery, six kidnapping, four attempts at child marriage, five medical negligence death, two attempt to rape, one abandoned-domestic violence, nine crowd control assault and one sexual harassment.

Meanwhile, a total of 3,71,503 cases of crimes against women were registered across the country in 2021, the government told the Parliament on Wednesday, citing data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).

The data shows that in 2020, as many as 3,98,620 persons were arrested in connection with crimes against women, 4,88,143 were charge-sheeted, and 31,402 were convicted.

Also, instances of crimes against women in the cities went down by 8.3 per cent in 2020 over the previous year. Crimes against women include cases of rape, outraging modesty, dowry deaths, harassment, acid attacks, and kidnappings.

According to the NCRB report released in September, “Majority of cases under crimes against women were registered under [the category of] cruelty by husband or his relatives (30.2 per cent), followed by an assault on women with intent to outrage modesty (19.7 per cent), kidnapping and abduction of women (19.0 per cent), and rape (7.2 per cent).”

It has been observed that there are several factors behind crime against women like attached social stigma, patriarchal nature of society, distrust in legal mechanisms, fear of retaliation etc.

Speaking about crime against women in the state, acting chairperson of MSCW Th Tiningpham Mongsang told the Imphal Free Press that the number of crimes registered by the commission in 2021 was lesser compared to the previous year.

“It is due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the previous year, the Commission registered 101 cases. The main objective of setting up the commission was to safeguard the interest of women. Its mandate is wide covering almost all aspects of women’s development,” she said.

In its effort to gather data on the status of the women in the state, the Commission will conduct a survey from January 2021, Monsang said. The Commission had recently written to the Manipur Police department, seeking a detailed report of the pending cases of crime against women. The commission had also consulted with the SPs of all the districts of the state regarding the matter in a joint meeting, she informed. The study on the status of women will help to take up work for the upliftment of the status of the women in the state, Monsang added.

She also said that the commission has no power to give judgment of any case, but it can recommend or direct the authority or to the higher authority for judgment. And the recorded data are the cases registered by the commission, she added.  

The acting chairperson stressed on the need to put more attention to gender sensitization as the varied nature of cases is rooted in gender-based differentiation. Gender-based violence leads to devastating and long-term mental and physical consequences, sometimes leading to death and disability among women and girls, she said.

WAD secretary, Sobita Mangsatabam said that violent offences against women are clear-cut gender-based discrimination in a patriarchal society where men are assumed to be superior and always given to subordinate status. Women have been deprived of their fundamental rights to life and personal liberty as provided under the constitution of India, she said. Violence including assault, sexual abuse, rape, etc. is becoming a legacy that passed from one generation to another. But the offences against women reflect the tragic reality that women are just not safe and secure anywhere, she said.

She continued that despite numerous policies, laws, and programmes, women face crimes in all stages and in all walks of life. All such crimes or violence cannot be stopped immediately as it requires time by educating people from the grassroots level. Literacy among females, spreading awareness among people and a full stop to patriarchy is the solution for these crimes, she mentioned. Apart from that, reporting of cases should be encouraged and the cases should be decided within a stipulated period of time as delayed justice is no justice. The legislation also needs to step up and amend the laws and serious punishment should be given to the criminals, Sobita said.

She added that the time has come to conduct several surveys together and study and analyse baseline surveys for proper implementation of any laws or policies or programmes. Each and every person should take responsibility for changing the patriarchal system of society that creates offence to women, she said.

It may be noted that in MSCW’s publication, ‘Women News Horizon’, it has been mentioned that the commission called on the DGP, Manipur to share the report of crime against women of all the districts from 2016 to July 2021. Based on the report shared by the office of SP/CID (CB), the table and chart of the crime against women report for the last five years was made. According to a submitted report by the state Police department, a total of 1,461 complaints were received and 1,458 FIRs registered, 552 charge-sheeted, 269 FR submitted, and 599 cases are pending.

However, the commission also pointed out that “the tabulation is incorrect in some parts of Bishnupur, Chandel, Thoubal, Tamenglong, Noney, Tengnoupal, and FIR is incorrect at Imphal East where MSCW has restrictions to rectify the data submitted the Police Authority.”

It may also be mentioned that the Commission has released its ‘Women News Horizon’ Volume V in September 2021 during the tenure of the previous chairperson Binota Mainam.