West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and the chief ministers of the states where the rape and sexual offense occurred should resign. They are stated to have failed to pass good legislation that can be implemented and enforced to fight the vice against women. It came in a speech made to the West Bengal Assembly after the introduction of the Aparajita Woman and Child Bill(West Bengal Criminal Laws and Amendment) Bill 2024.
While dissecting the Aparajita Bill, Mamata Banerjee said it will help the police to conduct instant investigations, offer justice at the earliest opportunity, and establish severe punishment for the culprits. The intended purpose of the bill is the enhancement of the rights of women and children by changing the existing laws as well as adding new provisions on sexual assault and other related offenses. Here, Banerjee argued that the bill seeks more of an amendment to the central act and strengthens it to ensure that it does not have any loopholes that allow such heinous crimes.
The bill was presented on the floor in the wake of junior doctors’ strike for asserting proper action against the accused involved in the alleged rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on 9 August. Banerjee deeply mournful over the sad tragedy has called upon the Opposition to press Governor CV Ananda Bose for signing of Aparajita Bill. She took time to appeal for passage of the bill to prevent such situations where people perpetrate the crimes and go scot-free.
When some of the BJP MLAs demanded Banerjee to tender her resignation over law and order situation, Suvendu Adhikari, the all party Leader, engaged her in a debate as she mocked the Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah while claiming that many incidents of crime against women transpired in so-called ‘safe’ states such as Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat. To support her stand she argued that West Bengal better addresses tortured women’s quest for justice by the court.
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