There has been outrage and calls for India's top judge to resign his position, after he said that an alleged rapist could be released from jail if he married his victim.
Chief justice Sharad Arvind Bobde said at a hearing involving the alleged rapist:
"If you want to marry [her] we can help you. If not, you lose your job and go to jail."
According to a letter and petition put together by campaigners, the accused stalked the victim, grabbed her, tied her up, and raped her. He is also accused of threatening to kill her by setting her alight and threatening her family. The girl later attempted to commit suicide. So far, the petition has gained over 5,000 signatures and it calls for justice for the victim and for the chief justice to resign.
"By suggesting that this rapist marry the victim-survivor, you, the chief justice of India, sought to condemn the victim-survivor to a lifetime of rape at the hands of the tormentor who drove her to attempt suicide."
It continues:
"This comment not only legitimises any kind of sexual, physical and mental violence by the husband, but it normalises the torture that Indian women have been facing within marriages for years without any legal recourse."
It is not the first time that the chief justice has courted controversy in relation to a women's rights issue. Recently he is alleged to have questioned whether it was possible for a man to rape his wife. He said at a hearing:
"The husband may be a brutal man, but can you call the act of sexual intercourse between a lawfully wedded man and wife as rape?"
Women's rights are a major topic in India where thousands of women are murdered each year and a huge percentage are subject to domestic abuse. It is also said that many women who come forward to the police regarding rape, sexual assault or domestic abuse are often accused of causing the incident to happen in the first place.
Earlier this week, there was shock in Utter Pradesh, India's most populous state, when a man beheaded his 17-year-old daughter and carried her head through the streets, due to the fact that he disagreed with her choice of boyfriend.
[h/t: The Guardian]
COMMENTS