Survey reveals 29 pc women faced molestation or sexual advances in public places
The survey conducted by LocalCircles revealed that over 75 percent of the victims did not even file a police complaint after facing such incidents.
While the world celebrates International Women's Day today, safety of women continues to remain a concern in India, numbers reveal. According to a survey conducted by community social media platform, , 29 percent of women in India faced molestation or sexual advances in public places and over 75 percent of the victims did not even file a police complaint.
The survey also saw 54 percent of the respondents saying that neither they nor their family members ever faced any instances of sexual harassment.
The top places for sexual harassment, according to the survey, are train or train stations, public gatherings, religious places, markets and other locations.
Sexual violence is a serious offence involving unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures; a demand or request for sexual favours; showing pornography against the will of a woman; making sexually-coloured remarks in the form of physical contact or other advances. These offences have serious legal implications as well.
The Thomson Reuters Foundation, in 2018, ranked India as the most dangerous country for women. Moreover, a report by National Crime Records Bureau released in 2019 suggested that out of 4 lakh reported cases of crimes committed against women, 32,033 were cases related to rape.
They survey also highlighted another survey conducted by the National Bar Association in 2018 in which 68 percent of victims of sexual harassment said that they don't report incidents fearing consequences.
However, the same report also states that victims facing molestation in workplaces "turn away fearing retaliatory action by perpetrators."
The survey received responses from more than 24,000 respondents residing in 319 districts.
It was conducted to understand how vulnerable women are to becoming victims of sexual advances and molestation in public places in India, what are the most common locations for it, and how effective is the complaint registration system and interfacing with police. It also sought to understand what actions the victims took to book the perpetrators.
Edited by Rekha Balakrishnan
