sexual violence

'The highly respected British medical journal Lancet has now pulled up the Indian government for failing to stop acts of rape and physical violence against women and girls. The journal has also indicated that it could commission a landmark paper to actually gauge the burden of such acts of violence in India in the near future. In an exclusive interview to TOI in Mexico, Richard Horton, the editor in chief of Lancet said the government "has the primary responsibility for the protection of women which extends from to issues of security to issues of health".

"On paper, the total comes to a mindboggling Rs 4,500 crore. But investigators say the worth of Asaram's shady empire will cross the Rs 10,000-crore mark if the land and real estate are valued at market rates instead of the old circle rates used by the police to value them... A murky money-lending nexus, shady land deals and clandestine conspiracies to buy police officers. Transactions in a range of financial instruments worth hundreds of crores. Investments in little-known American companies. Suspect foreign currency transactions worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

'Why isn’t it a crime for a man to rape his wife in India? The government says it’s because of poverty, religious beliefs, social customs and the mindset of the Indian society, among other things. A federal minister said Wednesday that India’s Bharatiya Janata Party-led government headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not plan to introduce punishments for marital rape.

'The performance of playback singer Ankit Tiwari, who was arrested on rape charges, at an annual Mumbai Police event has exposed the double face of the ruling BJP, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee said. "Nothing more can be expected from the BJP, which spoke of sensitivity towards crime against women and strong action against rape accused, during elections. "Even at the Centre, the BJP has refused to take action against a rape accused minister (apparently referring to chemicals and fertilisers minister Nihalchand Meghwal)," MPCC spokesman Sachin Sawant said.