WOMEN – 2011 - Indian Social Institute

the culprits were relatives, said the report. Among the states, Madhya Pradesh reported the highest
number of rape cases (2,998), accounting for 14 per cent of all such cases reported in the country. And
among 35 mega cities, Delhi city reported 23.8 per cent (404 out of 1,696) of total rape cases in 2009.
This means one in every four rapes occurred in the national capital, according to the NCRB figures.
Besides Delhi, the other cities which reported a large number of rape incidents are Mumbai (182), Bhopal
(117), Jabalpur (76), Jaipur (69) and Pune (67). (IE, 23/01/2011)
One in four women arrested for dowry-related crimes
One in every four women arrested in India go behind the bar for harassing their ilk for dowry and even
leading the victim to death. Out of the 1,79,294 women arrested in 2009, the National Crime Records
Bureau said, 25.95 per cent were apprehended under heads of dowry deaths and cruelty by husband and
relatives. According to the 'Crime in India' report, 41,351 women were arrested in 2009 under Section
498A of IPC (cruelty by husband and relatives) while 5,182 went behind bars for dowry deaths (Sec
304B). A total of 1,74,395 persons were arrested under Section 498A while the figure for arrest under
Section 340B was 23,374. Interestingly, the largest group of arrested women comes from the age group
of 30-45 years. While 15,137 women in the age bracket of 30-45 years were arrested on charges of
cruelty, 12,996 belonged to 18-30 years, 10,743 from 45-60 years and 2,290 were in the bracket of above
60 years. Similarly, the figures for dowry deaths in these age-groups were 1896, 1751, 1295 and 184
respectively. "185 girls below the age of 18 years were arrested on under Section 498A while 56 were
arrested for dowry deaths," the report said. The largest number of women arrested for various crimes
were from Maharashtra (28,818 women) followed by Tamil Nadu (17,065), Madhya Pradesh (16,344),
Andhra Pradesh (16,203) and Gujarat (13,938). In the national capital, 1,110 women (3.1 per cent) were
arrested for their involvement in crimes while the number of men were 35,153. A total of 28.49 lakh
people were arrested and only 6.3 per cent of them were women, the report said. According to the report,
4,007 women, including 84 girls under 18 years, were arrested on charges of murder while 2,748 were
apprehended for attempt to murder. (IE, 24/01/2011)
Housewife burnt alive for dowry
HYDERABAD: A 25-year-old housewife, T Rani, was burnt alive allegedly by her husband and in-laws for
additional dowry at her house in Jeedimetla on Monday. According to Jeedimetla police, Rani had
married T Balaraju, a casual worker with BHEL, five years ago. Rani's parents reportedly gave nine tolas
of gold and a two-wheeler as dowry at the time of the marriage. Balaraju's family members T Narsamma
and Mallaiah were harassing Rani for additional dowry and this led to quarrels between the couple. As a
result, Rani had been staying with her parents for some time, Jeedimetla inspector A Sanjeeva Rao said.
On Monday at around 8.30 am, she along with her two children returned to her in-laws house. Locals
informed the police that a burnt body was lying in the house of Balaraju. Rani was badly burnt and died
on spot. She might have been set ablaze between 9 am and 12 noon, the inspector said. Rani's father D
Balaraju lodged a complaint with the police stating that his daughter's in-laws were responsible for her
death. He told police that the in-laws used to harass his daughter for additional dowry and it was for this
reason Rani was staying with them. He claimed that they convinced Rani to return to her husband's
house, assuring her that they would settle the matter soon. "We suspect the role of Rani's husband and
her in-laws, who are absconding, in the murder," the inspector added. Police registered a case under
section 304 (murder) against them. (TOI, 25/01/2011)
For marrying a Dalit, man slits daughter's throat in police station
CHENNAI: A man was arrested for slitting the throat of his daughter at the Red Hills police station on
Monday. He was called to the police station after his daughter, who eloped with a Dalit, requested
protection as her family was against the marriage. S Ezhumalai arrived at the police station with a knife
hidden in his trousers and caught everyone by surprise by attacking Kalaivani, his daughter. Kalaivani,
who married P Joshua a week ago, is battling for life at a private hospital. A magistrate court sent
Ezhumalai to 15-day custody in the Ponneri sub jail. Following a complaint by Joshua and Kalaivani that
they feared for their lives as her family was against their marriage, Red Hills police inspector K Kumaran
called Ezhumalai for talks. "Ezhumalai, a real estate businessman, came to the station dressed in a pair
of trousers and shirt. As soon as he entered, he walked towards Kalaivani, pulled out a knife from his
pocket and slit her throat," Kumaran said. Kalaivani, an undergraduate student, fled home on January 21
to get married to Joshua in a city church. She had met Joshua, an employee of a private firm in Ambattur,