Rajasthan: Bill with a death penalty clause for child rapists sent for President’s approval
The bill which social activists termed as historic was passed by the Rajasthan assembly during its last budget session.
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Jaipur: The Rajasthan government has sent the bill that makes the provision of death penalty for those found guilty of raping girls aged 12 or below to the union government that will forward it to the President for his approval. After the bill gets the President’s nod, it will be signed by the Rajasthan governor. It will then be implemented in the state.
The bill which social activists termed as historic was passed by the Rajasthan assembly during its last budget session.
“The bill has been forwarded to the union government. It will then be sent to the President for his approval,” said a senior officer of legal works department in Rajasthan.
The state government has made two amendments in an existing law. The amendments make the provision for capital punishment to criminals found guilty of raping or gang-raping girls aged 12 or below.
Criminals found guilty of raping a minor girl (aged 18 or below) will now get a maximum punishment of 14 years and life imprisonment. The existing laws makes allows a maximum sentence of seven years. If a minor is gang-raped and the child dies, the convict will have to spend 20 years in jail.
According to the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) 2016 report, the cases of crimes against children have shown a steady rise in Rajasthan. The state recorded 4,034 such cases in 2016, which is 3.8 per cent of the crimes against children (98,344) registered across the country. It stands fourth in the crime against women category.
