Mumbai: Crime against women on election agenda for Mumbai South candidate Milind Deora

MUMBAI: City Congress chief Milind Deora, who is contesting for the Lok Sabha polls from Mumbai South, has taken up crimes against women as an election agenda following a TOI report that mentioned a 172% increase in rape cases in south Mumbai in five years. Deora said that the spurt in crime in the tony areas of the city is alarming and the issue is not being discussed or debated enough.

Data released by a non-profit, Praja Foundation, last month showed that from 2013-14 to 2017-18, the neighbourhoods of Worli, Colaba, Byculla and Malabar Hill saw the biggest spike in cases of rape. The report also stated that south Mumbai was the only constituency that saw a surge in murder cases (17% over five years) while every other constituency saw a declide.

"It's a positive thing that women are finding the strength the come out and speak about their ordeal and file complaints. But I believe the staggering number of cases are not solely due to this. In my interactions with women of different ages and belonging to different walks of life, the one common point was how unsafe they were feeling in south Mumbai. Crimes against women are getting worse and the police need to do a much better job," Deora said.

Comparing south Mumbai to Delhi's Lutyens as the residences of ministers as well as the government's headquarters are located here, Deora said the security should be several notches up. "The police have to be more accessible, the environment at police stations needs to improve and more female officers need to be inducted. Many women walk home or take public transport late in the night after work and their safety is very important. More visible policing can be the only deterrant for crime. Electronic surveillance can only serve as evidence but rarely prevents crime," he said.

Deora said he would continue to back the issue of rising crimes in south Mumbai even post elections.