In the wake of the spurt in incidents of heinous crime, the state police are required to tighten the noose around the neck of criminals which is the need of the hour. Last week, an incident of gang rap with three migrant labor women was reported in a Dera in Panipat which clearly indicates the deteriorating law and order situation. Due to the availability of electricity connection and CCTV, the criminals escaped after committing the crime and till now no clue has been found. The police administration is also continuously trying to catch the criminals but till now its hands are empty. In the wake of the gravity of the crime, a team of the Haryana State Women Commission (HSWC) has also visited the spot and met the victim women.
Considering the seriousness of the issue, the Women’s Commission has written a letter to the DGP and the Chief Secretary of the state that the dera owners in all the districts should ensure the arrangement of CCTV and electricity connection in their camps so that such incidents do not happen in the future. According to the information received from the Women’s Commission, the Dera owners will have to make arrangements for electricity connection and CCTV and until the arrangements are not completed, the accommodation facility for the laborers working in the farms will be made in the village so that no problem regarding their safety occurs. It is noteworthy that a large number of migrant laborers work in the fields on a large scale in Haryana. Of the victims, women are from UP and Bihar. According to the information received, there are thousands of Deras made by farmers in Haryana. The number of Deras in all the districts of Haryana is in thousands and a large number of people live by building houses in the fields. At the same time, landlords also make Deras in the farms in which arrangements are made for the laborers working in the fields to accommodate them.
Renu Bhatia who holds the portfolio of the Chairperson, of the Haryana State Women Commission said that keeping in view the the seriousness of the incident, a letter has been written to the Chief Secretary and DGP mentioning that Instructions should be issued to DCs and SPs in all the districts to ensure that all Deras owners should come up with the compliance of the directions making the required arrangements in Deras. Further, she added that all Dera owners should come up with the installation of CCTV and electricity connection and Until this is arranged, it will be mandatory to make accommodation arrangements for laborers in the village so that such incidents do not happen in the future.
Further, she said that to some extent it is also the responsibility of the Dera owners to ensure the safety of labor at night, due to which the Women’s Commission has now written a letter to the DGP and the Chief Secretary regarding this. In case this is not possible within the stipulated time frame, it is natural that necessary action will be taken. After this incident, there is an atmosphere of panic in the nearby Deras. Besides, there is a lack of basic facilities in the camps due to which it becomes difficult to live there. According to the information made available by the police, the four accused who committed the crime had knives and other sharp weapons. Four people entered the house and tied the family members with ropes before raping three female workers. Later the accused also looted money and jewellery. In another case, a woman was attacked on Wednesday that night and this incident took place about a kilometer away from the gangrape site in which the woman died.