People's Democracy

 

Delhi: JMS Condemns Gangrape

 

THE Janwadi Mahila Samiti (JMS) of Delhi has severely condemned the gangrape of a 30 years old woman from north eastern India, when she was returning from her work at about 1.00 am from a call centre in Gurgaon. 

 

In a statement issued on November 25 by its president Sonia Verma and general secretary Sehba Farooqui, the JMS also pointed out that the referred- to incident was not an isolated one. Since the rape of a Delhi University student in 2005, several instances have come to light where gangs of boys have targeted young women returning from their work. In this particular incident, the call centre transport did not even drop the woman home “because he (the driver) was in a hurry.” Instead, he left her on the roadside in the neighbourhood of her home where she was abducted, raped and then abandoned in the Mongolpuri area.

 

The JMS is of the opinion that this incident shows that the state government has neglected the safety of young working women. It has left unprotected in the middle of the night such unsafe areas as Dhaula Kuan where several incidents have taken place. The incident also shows that BPO companies, which make women work at odd hours, are not willing to take the responsibility for the security of these women.

 

In the light of all these aspects, the Janwadi Mahila Samiti has put forward the following demands:

 

1) Immediate action must be taken against the perpetrators of such heinous crimes and no efforts must be spared to arrest the accused immediately.

 

2) The Delhi government must increase the security personnel on roads which are major arteries, connecting residential areas to places like Gurgaon and Noida where there is a large concentration of BPO units and call centres.

 

3) The concerned transport company must be punished for negligence and abdication of responsibility in this particular case.

 

4) The Delhi government must hold the owners of all call centres and BPO companies accountable for the security of their women employees. Strict guidelines must be formulated and enforced for this purpose.