The Supreme Court on Monday took suo motu cognisance of a series of recent rape and sexual assault cases reported in Delhi-NCR, including the alleged gangrape of a minor in a Delhi park and the sexual assault of a minor on a moving sleeper bus.
A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice K Vinod Chandran said it was distressed by reports of recurring sexual offences in the National Capital Region and stressed that accountability must follow failures in preventing such crimes.
SC draws parallel with Nirbhaya case
The bench referred to the gangrape and murder of a teenage girl in Swarup Nagar, Delhi, where police recovered her decomposed body from a field.
The court also referred to the alleged sexual assault of a minor on a moving sleeper bus. The bus travelled around 47 kilometres from Greater Noida to Delhi without being intercepted by police, according to the court.
“One cannot help but draw painful parallels to the Nirbhaya incident of 2012.”
The bench questioned whether law enforcement mechanisms had made meaningful progress since the 2012 case.
“These incidents considered alongside other recent reports of sexual offences across Delhi-NCR starkly underline a systematic failure on the part of the law enforcement and the public administrative authorities to guarantee basic public safety,” the bench observed, reported Live Law.
Public spaces cannot become high-risk zones
The Supreme Court said the right to live with dignity and without fear of violence forms part of the right to life guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
It said public spaces such as roads, parks, buses, metro stations, subways and footbridges cannot be allowed to become “zones of high risk” because of inadequate lighting, poor surveillance, insufficient patrolling or other preventable administrative shortcomings.
Court seeks accountability, registers case
The bench also said statements by public authorities and elected representatives expressing concern or solidarity were insufficient unless accompanied by concrete action and accountability.
“Expressions of solidarity devoid of accountability fall short of answering the larger institutional question. Expressing solidarity is not a solution to this social evil. What is required is a measurable response with the responsibility and accountability fixed upon authorities entrusted with the prevention of crimes, maintenance of public order and protection of vulnerable persons," the bench observed.
The court directed that a suo motu case be registered to examine the issue.