Uttar Pradesh tops in crimes against women: Girija Vyas

LUCKNOW - Uttar Pradesh tops in crimes against women in the country, National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Girija Vyas said here Tuesday after visiting the family of a teenager who was gangraped and murdered.

“There was no doubt that incidence of sexual exploitation of women and children was on the rise all over the country but the fact remains that UP (Uttar Pradesh) tops in crimes against women,” said Vyas.

She was talking to mediapersons after calling on the family of a 17-year-old Dalit girl who was gangraped and murdered in Chinhat area on the outskirts of Lucknow Jan 25.

“It was a matter of serious concern that the incident occurred in the state capital, yet the culprits managed to get away by getting the post-mortem examination report manipulated,” Vyas said.

“After all, the post-mortem report initially submitted by the police did not show rape at all. It was only after the matter shot into headlines and different activists raised the issue that the girl’s body was exhumed for a second post-mortem, which confirmed rape,” she added.

Asked about Chief Minister Mayawati’s charge that all central government agencies were busy finding fault with Uttar Pradesh simply for political reasons, Vyas said: “Well, if Mayawati were to visit the victim’s family and hear their heart-rending tale of woe, she too would have tears rolling down her eyes and would also realise that whatever was being said about crime against women in UP was true.”

The NCW chief was of the view that crimes against women were unabated in the state largely because of “bad and corrupt policing, blatant, undue interference of politicians and poor rate of conviction of criminals”.