The horrific incident of December 16 shook the entire nation and stirred innumerable protests, where citizens came out to raise their voice and show their anger against such dastardly acts.

With the trial of the Delhi student having only begun and an ordinance passed that awards death penalty in special cases, 13 speakers from different fields will throw more light on the issue and look at possible solutions that could reduce to rate of such crimes. The event organised by the Asia Society India Centre will be held today at the Chemould Prescott Road Gallery.

Men with conscience
Each of the 13 speakers will have five minutes each to present their views and also look at possible solutions. Actor Rahul Bose, one of the speakers at the event, feels that without the participation of men, no gender parity can be reached. “Many men who join protests are secondary victims of violence, like the father or a brother of the victim, who are left with feelings of anger and frustration. Nothing has been done to reach out to the men. For things to change, we need to get people from within the patriarchy to change. That’s where we should start,” he believes.

Legal aspect
When we ask if stricter punishment and better laws are needed to act as a deterrent, he replies: “The laws are strict enough. The conviction rate needs to get better; it needs to come up from 26% to 76%. This will be a serious deterrent. The new ordinance has declared that death penalty can be awarded in rare cases. If you impose a death penalty, judges will be very careful while dealing with a case and conviction rates could fall. It will have a reverse effect. I have been working with many activists and most believe that capital punishment can cause a decrease in conviction rates,” Bose reasons.