India’s Daughter India’s Reform Part 2 of 5

If you have not had an opportunity to read parts 1,2 and part 1 of 5 be sure to give them a read before reading this final part.
Part 1:
Part 2:
Part 1 of 5 India’s Reform:

Legal System:

India needs to make its court system swift, severe and certain.  What does that mean?

Cesare Beccaria, a renowned sociologist, argued that if punishment is swift, severe and certain crime should decrease. If individuals are aware of the consequences of their actions and they know that a severe punishment will come swiftly after the crime, they are less likely to offend. Offenders should not question if there will be punishment, it should be expected. Consequently, this will minimize the chance of “getting away with it”.

In India’s Daughter, the rapist argued, he didn’t understand why he was being punished for something that thousands of other men do as well. Why did he think this way?  Simple, because he believed he would have got away with it, just like those other men did.  Beccaria’s theory if implemented would help tackle this mentality.

Although India has expanded the definition of rape to sexual assault, it still needs to incorporate marital rape to establish and reinforce the mentality that women are not the property of men. Furthermore,  the court system needs  to maintain consistency;  judges need to treat like cases alike and unique  cases should consider  factors that make the case unique If these cases are being dealt with proper care and attention, India could change the mentality much quicker.  However, there is a key factor in making this process work – equality.

There should be no one above the law. The wealthy should not be exempt from  punishment  because they can afford to pay off a few police officers nor should the son of a politician escape punishment because of his parent’s political power.

If the people of India see that the law is being applied without prejudice, it will be taken seriously by everyone. The wealthy will be scared and deter their sons from partaking in such monstrous acts and the poor will realize that if the wealthy cannot get away with rape, they most certainly cannot either.  I know this idealistic but it’s not impossible.  This brings us to perhaps the most powerful factor to create change, the media.

Make sure to read part 3 of the part 5 series next week.  Did you like what you read? Press “like” !

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  1. never have I heard of any theories out there that can be used to tackle India crime rate. This was the first and really good one. I believe swift, severe and certain would work, if applied correctly. I love your writing, your analysis, thought processing and the different subareas you included. So much out there that non-academics do not know exists within the socio-legals system.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you so much Ishpreet! Your words are truly humbling.
      I aim to use my knowledge as a Crime, Law and Deviance major along with my minor in politics to assess situations from multiple perspectives.

      I hope to read more of your comments in the future. Readers such as yourself help me stay focused and produce better material. Thank you!


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