CHANDIGARH: Despite the Covid-19 lockdown in 2020, three to four women approached the National Commission for Women every day to report crimes against them. According to data released by the Commission, maximum complaints were reported from Haryana in 2020 as compared to 2018 and 2019. The Haryana State Commission for Women (HSCW) has been in place in the state since 2012.
Both the Haryana Police and the government have been under fire from the opposition over crimes against women. Haryana saw 13,481 cases of crimes against women in 2020, when 1,266 women approached the NCW in person, through mail or through other mode of communication. At 489 complaints, issues related to the right to live with dignity topped the tally.
Of the remaining complaints, 235 were related to domestic violence, 134 were related to police inaction or police apathy against women and 126 were related to dowry harassment. NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma said most complaints are at the final stages of disposal.
“Immediate remedy is the only thing which a complainant looks forward too. Like other systems, the Commission cannot ask the complainant to go back. Hence, we give them a patient hearing and deal with their complaints properly. Rest, the state Commission has its own responsibilities and they too are doing their job,’’ she said.
On the high mumber of complaints from Haryana, she said it could be due to the Commission’s proximity to the state. A total of 1,144 complaints were reported in 2019 and 1,239 complaints were reported in 2018.
When contacted, Preeti Bhardwaj Dalal, vice-chairperson, HSWC, who is now officiating as chairperson, admitted that complaints reach the NCW. “Largely, it is due to awareness among women folk, especially due to IT raids. There had been some impact of lockdown on the functioning here. As for complaints, sometimes, there is duplicacy of complaints as well. We normally get 14 to 20 complaints every day through various means. Heads of complaints are the same as NCW,’’ she said.