Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while addressing the nation from the Red Fort on Independence Day, stated that the public is angry over crimes against women said that the states must ensure women's safety. He also emphasised the need for speedy investigation and punishment to restore public trust. PM Modi's comments came amid massive protests over the brutal rape and murder of a 31-year-old woman doctor at a hospital in Kolkata.
...I would like to express my pain once again, from the Red Fort today. As a society, we will have to think seriously about the atrocities against women that are happening - there is outrage against this in the country. I can feel this outrage. The country, society, and state governments will have to take this seriously. Speedy investigation of crimes against women, those executing these monstrous deeds be awarded strict punishment at the earliest - this is important to instil confidence in society," PM Modi said.
The Prime Minister noted that when "a person of such monstrous tendency is punished, it is not seen in news, but restricted to a corner".
"It is the need of the hour, that extensive discussion on those receiving punishment be held so that those committing this sin understand that this leads to hanging. I think it is very important to instil this fear," he stressed.
Hours before the Prime Minister's remarks on women's safety, thousands of women from various backgrounds gathered in different parts of West Bengal at midnight, expressing widespread anger over the rape and murder of an on-duty doctor at RG Kar Medical College Hospital in Kolkata. Protests seeking justice for the victim were held across various cities in the past few weeks.
Amid the women's ‘Reclaim the night’ protest, some unidentified miscreants entered the premises of the state-run medical college and vandalised portions of the medical facility.
Meanwhile, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also announced launching a protest to demand justice for the victim. The Chief Minister asked the CBI, which took over the probe from the Kolkata Police, to "ensure justice within next Sunday".
