Category: Education & Career

Intending to find credible statistical data on public policy issues, a new academic year began in England amid Covid-19’s uncertainties when MPA Candidates at UCL were introduced to a World Bank databank in September 2020. A reality researched and reported by the World Bank was “women who believe a husband is justified in beating his wife when she” “argues with him,” “burns the food,” “steps out without informing him,” “neglects the children,” and “refused sex with him.” There was no data on India on the database. However, some sad global realities came across while attempting to find data on India.

Research by the UN Women highlights that 35% of the global female population have been victims of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). Factors such as fear of children’s safety and economic dependence, amongst countless other factors, result in less than 40% of victims seeking any assistance. In many instances, victims do not even seek police interventions since “abuse is acceptable” in many cultures. 38% of IPV victims get murdered before they even gain the courage to seek any assistance. A significant proportion from the other 62% do not even attempt seeking any help. Due to the pandemic, couples/lovers/partners were in forced exposure, which resulted in a five-fold increase in IPV reported in some countries, thus enabling governments and policing agencies to course correct.

Surprisingly, data for the second-most populous country in the world was virtually non-existent. There could possibly be two reasons for this. First, India has attained PURNA SWARAJ from gender-based crimes. Second, India does not report any statistics on gender crimes to international organizations. Forbes ranks India amongst the top ten most dangerous countries for women in the world. Thomson Reuters Foundation claims India to be the “world’s most dangerous country for women.” Both claims make the first possibility utopian. The increasing occurrence of rapes, including Hathras, especially after the course of events in Nirbhaya’s aftermath, is appropriate evidence to back both claims.

While data on gender crimes in India was unavailable on the World Bank Database, I managed to create a dataset by pulling out numbers from reports/statistics published by NCRB and BPRD on gender crimes and policing, respectively. The graph beneath showcases the evident actuality.

The 54% of “other crimes” from within the 4.2 million+ reported instances were crimes including but not limited to cruelty by husband’s relatives, dowry deaths, acid attacks, stalking, voyeurism, human trafficking, etc. The most significant concern is the fact that if we collate India’s reported statistics with the UN assessment that only 40% of victims report crimes, over 10 million crimes against women might have taken place, if not more!!!

Mental health issues amongst men, illiteracy, and unemployment were the most common causes cited for gender-based crimes worldwide. After countless hours of attempting to find reliable statistical data on India’s male mental health issues, I could not find statistics needed to prove such a direct correlation in India’s case. It was time to turn to the potential role of our police force in the crime control and reduction process.

Political green lighting enabled Punjab Police to sweep terrorism out of the state. Similarly, Maharashtra Police wiped out the underworld from the state to a large extent. Based on these precedents, it may perhaps not be incorrect to assume that if policymakers in every state give a green signal to the police force, there is a possibility of the gender crimes epidemic reducing significantly.

With the limited data available, I ran a regression on a public policy statistics software to test the hypothesis: Does increased female presence in Indian policing reduce crimes against women in India? The result:

The regression proved the existing conclusions of almost every study conducted on gender responsive policing. Increased female presence in policing, by default, promotes empathy, thereby encouraging victims to speak freely during the investigation process. Research on Kerala Police’s gender sensitization approach indicates 46% increased “sense of safety” and over 60% overall satisfaction amongst female participants from within the state. While India saw gender crimes rising by 12.79% between 2017–19, Kerala’s increase was 3.66%.

While running regressions, I forecasted an increase of 5% in recruiting females in policing for the next three years, and the result indicated a potential decrease in gender crimes by 2.3%. However, variables such as mental health issues amongst men, unemployment, illiteracy, and a disproportionate increase between India’s population and policing headcount, were not considered.

Now, I assumed since our cops deal with countless variants of crimes, many would argue that increasing the proportion of females in policing would have adverse effects on policing operations relating to other crimes such as murders, urban violence, etc. The question that arises then is how to promote gender sensitization within the current policing structure?

After studying different policing models and various public administration approaches, I started scouting for solutions that can be implemented immediately with a high probability of success. Equipping cops with Bodyworn Cameras (BWC) seemed to be the most expeditiously implementable solution to assist them in the pursuit of crime management and reduction.

Almost every study on crime reduction in the U.S. suggests that using BWCs is instrumental in reducing the probability of evidence manipulation. For example, suspects changing statements can be significantly reduced. A year-long University of Cambridge study on 2,000 cops in the U.S. and the U.K. suggests a 93% decrease in citizens’ complaints while improving policing efficiency in terms of evidence gathering. In George Floyd’s case, too, BWC footage was instrumental in the criminal justice process’s success.

Two lessons every policy analyst learns are that every public policy problem has an infinite number of solutions, and every public policy solution has an infinite number of obstacles to be addressed. To reduce, if not end, the gender crime epidemic, India needs Jan Aadesh and political will to merge. For this, both stakeholders shall have to prioritize women’s safety.

Whether or not Indian policymakers decide to work towards reducing gender crimes, every reader of this article has the power to reduce this epidemic. At the most basic level, we need two significant changes in our thinking. Men need to realize that women play an equally, if not a more critical role in the home and the workplace and deserve respect as equals. On the other hand, women need to start speaking up more often about their issues or potential risks they face. Thus, leading other women to speak up. If both these changes begin simultaneously, one day, society will win the battle against gender crimes and inequality.

In his University of Texas commencement speech, Admiral William McRaven stated that all it takes is one member to inspire broken teams to sail through life. One leads to two, and eventually, a coalition is built. If only one person in every household or every workplace decides to become that one! A new Inquilab shall begin! And hopefully, we’ll achieve independence from gender crimes and inequality someday! Till then, the hope is #ThisTooShallPass

About the Author

Gaurav Kant is a Masters in Public Administration and Management Candidate at University College London’s School of Public Policy. His research focus is gender crimes/inequalities and public safety. Before UCL, Gaurav worked at the Philadelphia City Council while residing in Philadelphia as an MBA Candidate at Jefferson (erstwhile Philadelphia University) University’s Kanbar School of Business. For any collaboration (academic/non-academic) on gender issues, he’s available at: gaurav.kant.20@ucl.ac.uk