Crime against women on the rise, no tough action
In Karnataka, a state with 6.11 crore people spread out over 30 districts, the responsibility of safeguarding women’s rights is with the Karnataka State Commission for Women (KSCW), a government-appointed body housed in Cauvery Bhavan in Bengaluru.
One feature that distinguishes KSCW from other government bodies is the long line of supplicants present outside the office, spilling out onto the staircases and into the streets. The people who arrive at the office of the Commission are from all over the state, right from the outskirts of Bengaluru to places like Raichur, Kalaburagi and Belagavi.
For Nagalakshmi Bai, the current chairperson of KSCW, the large number of people waiting outside her chambers is a sign of the trust people have reposed in her office.
Not everyone agrees with this view.
“The women’s commission, compared to any other commission of its kind, is approachable, but I don’t think that they have the human resources to handle the cases. So, most of the people have to wait from morning to evening, without any remedies or redressal,” K S Vimala of Janavaadi Mahila Sanghatane
told DH.
The KSCW office is currently staffed by 12 members. Most of them are employed on a contractual basis. The KSCW, funded by the Department of Women and Child Development, faces a persistent lack of resources, besides the perennial shortage of staff. The lack of a dedicated vehicle to carry out everyday work and the lack of funds to set up and run a dedicated helpline are some of the problems that stop the Commission from addressing the cases effectively.
Provided with the right personnel, Nagalakshmi Bai claims, her office can do wonders, but no such assistance is forthcoming from the government.
There is also a problem with the redressal mechanism of the KSCW. Currently, people either present their cases through email, write letters or turn up in person, hoping for some resolution.
The sheer volume of petitions though, is also a problem. “Even when we give a complaint, it goes unanswered. It is as if it (KSCW) is non-existent,” said Sharada Gopal, a grassroots women’s activist in Dharwad.
The location of the KSCW office poses a problem to people from certain parts of the state. “They don’t consider North Karnataka a part of the state,” Sharada told DH. For grassroots activists like her, far from the centres of political power, the district administration becomes the only arbiter, a less than ideal situation when it comes to women’s rights.
Mamatha Yajaman, a women’s activist, said that she has no faith in the KSCW after it took two months to act on a complaint she filed on behalf of a victim from Yadgir.
In Karnataka, a state with 6.11 crore people spread out over 30 districts, the responsibility of safeguarding women’s rights is with the Karnataka State Commission for Women (KSCW), a government-appointed body housed in Cauvery Bhavan in Bengaluru.
One feature that distinguishes KSCW from other government bodies is the long line of supplicants present outside the office, spilling out onto the staircases and into the streets. The people who arrive at the office of the Commission are from all over the state, right from the outskirts of Bengaluru to places like Raichur, Kalaburagi and Belagavi.
For Nagalakshmi Bai, the current chairperson of KSCW, the large number of people waiting outside her chambers is a sign of the trust people have reposed in her office.
Not everyone agrees with this view.
“The women’s commission, compared to any other commission of its kind, is approachable, but I don’t think that they have the human resources to handle the cases. So, most of the people have to wait from morning to evening, without any remedies or redressal,” K S Vimala of Janavaadi Mahila Sanghatane
told DH.
The KSCW office is currently staffed by 12 members. Most of them are employed on a contractual basis. The KSCW, funded by the Department of Women and Child Development, faces a persistent lack of resources, besides the perennial shortage of staff. The lack of a dedicated vehicle to carry out everyday work and the lack of funds to set up and run a dedicated helpline are some of the problems that stop the Commission from addressing the cases effectively.
Provided with the right personnel, Nagalakshmi Bai claims, her office can do wonders, but no such assistance is forthcoming from the government.
There is also a problem with the redressal mechanism of the KSCW. Currently, people either present their cases through email, write letters or turn up in person, hoping for some resolution.
The sheer volume of petitions though, is also a problem. “Even when we give a complaint, it goes unanswered. It is as if it (KSCW) is non-existent,” said Sharada Gopal, a grassroots women’s activist in Dharwad.
The location of the KSCW office poses a problem to people from certain parts of the state. “They don’t consider North Karnataka a part of the state,” Sharada told DH. For grassroots activists like her, far from the centres of political power, the district administration becomes the only arbiter, a less than ideal situation when it comes to women’s rights.
Mamatha Yajaman, a women’s activist, said that she has no faith in the KSCW after it took two months to act on a complaint she filed on behalf of a victim from Yadgir.
