Law enforcement agencies must establish a decisive deterrent against anti-social elements to ensure that women can travel safely at any hour across the National Capital Region, the Supreme Court observed on Monday.
Hearing a suo motu case addressing recent sexual assaults in Delhi-NCR, a bench comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and K Vinod Chandran underscored that the administrative focus must shift toward preempting offences rather than merely responding after they occur. The judges remarked that the police need to strike fear into criminals and anti-social actors prone to committing violence against women.
Focus On Pre-Emptive Policing
The apex court noted a persistent public perception that women remain unsafe within the capital, especially across identified vulnerable pockets. Stressing the necessity of joint institutional efforts, the bench stated that authorities must ensure every woman feels secure travelling on roads or utilizing the metro network, even as late as 11 pm.
Emphasizing that sexual violence is intolerable in any civilized society, the judges reiterated that proactive deterrence remains the primary obligation of the policing machinery.
Systemic Failures Under Scrutiny
The observations came during proceedings titled ‘In Re: Recent rape incidents in Delhi NCR’. The top court had initiated the case on September 28 following media reports highlighting crimes against women and minor girls, which the bench characterized as reflections of a systemic breakdown within law enforcement.
The court’s intervention was prompted by three separate incidents: the alleged gang-rape of a 17-year-old girl in Delhi’s Aastha Kunj Park, the gang-rape and murder of a teenage girl in Swaroop Nagar, and the sexual assault of a minor inside a moving sleeper bus. In the transit assault, the vehicle traversed more than 47 kilometres from Greater Noida to Delhi without being intercepted by police personnel.
