Women in Manipur are facing problems in lodging complaints regarding crime against them due to shortage of female personnel in the women police stations across the state, according to acting chairperson of Manipur State Commission for Women (MSCW), Tiningpham Monsang.
Addressing a press conference at her office in Imphal’s Lamphel on December 21, Monsang said that during the current year, the commission registered 76 cases related to the crime against women. Out of these cases, the commission has so far disposed of 13 cases and investigation and hearing of the remaining 63 cases are in progress.
The total number of cases received by the commission in 2021 was lesser in number compared to the previous year. It is due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the previous year, the commission had registered 101 cases.
Monsang then observed a lesser number of the cases and the delayed disposal of the cases is due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
She then reminded that the commission for women was constituted on September 15, 2006 as a statutory body at the state level under the Manipur State Commission for Women Act 2006.
“The main objective of setting up the commission was to safeguard the interest of women. Its mandate is very wide covering almost all aspects of women’s development,” she said.
To enable women to serve the women, the commission is working to create a favourable environment, Monsang said.
Recently, members of the commission met with the director of the Manipur Social Welfare to enact the rules framed for the effective functioning of the commission. The acting chairperson of the commission then said that the commission prepared a drafted rule. It will be submitted to the government for approval at the earliest, she further said.
In its effort to know the status of the women in the state, the commission will conduct a survey beginning from January, 2021, Monsang said. Initiating the table preparation for the purpose, the commission had recently written to the Manipur Police department seeking a detailed report of the pending cases of crime against women. The commission had also consulted with the SPs of all the districts of the state regarding the matter in a joint meeting, she informed. The study on the status of women will help to take up work for the upliftment of the status of the women in the state, Monsang added.
While strongly condemning the most recent case of crime against women in the state, the acting chairperson of the women commission informed that the commission had lodged a suo-motu case regarding the recent alleged kidnapping and rape of a 21-year-old woman.
The commission has written to the state Director General of Police (DGP) to furnish a detailed report regarding the incident. The commission will also press the police to look into if a FIR case can be taken up, she said.
The acting chairperson of the commission was referring to the recent incident of alleged kidnapping of a girl who is pursuing PhD at JNU in New Delhi by a person and detained her for three days at an undisclosed location. The victim girl alleged that after kidnapping, the man hailing from Imphal West district tried to forcibly marry her.
