New Delhi: A parliamentary panel has pushed for more powers for the National Commission for Women (NCW) — the statutory body formed in 1992 to protect and promote the interest of women — to make it more “strong, independent and effective”, recommending to the Centre necessary legislative amendments in a time-bound manner.
In its report tabled in Parliament Thursday, the Committee on Empowerment of Women observed that the NCW had sent a proposal in August 2013 and a revised proposal in July 2014 seeking amendments to the National Commission for Women Act, 1990.
While the commission takes up issues concerning women, in the absence of adequate powers, it has received flak from women’s groups for becoming a toothless body.
In 2014, the commission had proposed amendments so as to have the power to record facts constituting the offence, statement of the accused and to forward the case to a magistrate. It had also sought powers to ensure that every proceeding before the commission be deemed a judicial proceeding. At present, the NCW does not have the power to penalise those who fail to turn up to attend the commission’s hearing despite being summoned.
Observing that the recommendations have been pending since 2015, when a draft cabinet note regarding the proposed amendments was prepared, the parliamentary committee said in its report, “Since NCW made the above mentioned recommendations about eight years ago….the Committee, therefore, recommends that NCW should chalk out its fresh proposals for amendments in NCW Act, 1990.”
It added that these recommendations should be submitted to the Ministry of Women and Child Development, which should “finalise the same in a time bound manner for introducing an amendment Bill in Parliament”.
The committee has further recommended that the Centre create provisions to provide a “statutory linkage with state commissions for women” to ensure smooth coordination, and also empower the NCW with “additional powers to ensure a certain degree of accountability of the police towards them to implement their directions and recommend a suitable penalty in case of willful disobedience of summons etc.”.
While pushing for better coordination between the national and state commissions, the panel expressed concern about several states and Union territories, including Madhya Pradesh and Bihar (which don’t have dedicated commissions), either not having commissions or the ones present not being fully functional in the absence of chairpersons and members.
It also recommended that the Ministry of Women and Child Development take up this issue with state governments to fill up vacancies and set up commissions wherever they are yet to be constituted.
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Delay in resolution of complaints
The NCW gets complaints related to rape, acid attack, sexual harassment, stalking/voyeurism, trafficking, dowry death, domestic violence, etc.
According to the report, it received 1,84,297 complaints between 2015-16 and 2022-23, of which only 1,14,903 complaints have been resolved.
It recommended that the ministry and the NCW “take appropriate measures to resolve all the complaints within a definite period of time by streamlining the procedures”.
Raising concern over the slow pace of disposal of cases registered with NCW’s NRI cell, which was set up in 2009 to deal with issues arising from NRI marriages, the committee has recommended a slew of measures to expedite the redressal process.
According to the report, of a total of 2,056 cases registered with the NCW’s NRI cell since 2019, only 502 have been settled.
The committee recommended that the government enter into Mutual Legal Assistance Treaties (MLAT) with more countries and that a ‘one stop’ center be set up for providing legal and psychological counselling, besides rehabilitation to the distressed and abandoned Indian women married to NRIs in India and abroad in coordination with Indian missions.
It further recommended the establishment of a ‘single window’ enquiry system and an ‘NRI cell’ at a designated police station in each district and at the state level for easy access to women deserted by NRI husbands.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
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