As the reports of honour killings continue to pour, the Union Law Ministry has opined that such crimes and delivery of justice by mob could be checked through a fresh and tough legislation accompanied by suitable amendments to the existing laws.
Interacting with media persons, Law Minister M Veerappa Moily said his Ministry had given its opinion to the Ministry of Home Affairs, that the killings at the dictates of caste panchayats could certainly be brought down with Amendments to the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Evidence Act and the Special Marriages Act to remove the grey areas and pin down the killers and award punishments.
‘The perpetrators of such crimes could not be punished because of the legal lacune but if the amendments to the existing law could be brought about, than such killings will be treated as murders and any person or kin and caste panchayats can be held guilty for such killings, he asserted, adding, ‘Each member of such panchayats can be deemed as an accused irrespective of their participation in the ghastly crimes’.
The Supreme Court too had favoured a stringent law to check such crimes.
The Ministry has also suggested to ‘curtail’ notice period of 30 days for registration of marriages.
‘I personally favour doing away with this provision altogether’, Mr Moily said, adding that there should be a debate on this issue in the society.
Mr Moily said he had also proposed a legislation to cut down the delays in justice administration in matters concerning criminal assaults on children, women, senior citizens by referring these cases to fast track courts.
‘We don’t want repetition of more cases of Ruchika in the country’, he added.
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