Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G. Kishan Reddy said on Monday that States have been asked for their suggestions to amend the British era Indian Penal Code (IPC).Mr. Reddy, speaking at a function in Delhi, said the Centre was prepared to make laws and create infrastructure to make women safe.“India has a rich culture and heritage. We have a culture of respecting women. We celebrate the power of women as Shakthi, the all-powerful. In no other culture, we have such veneration of women’s power,” he said.He said the government has amended criminal laws from time-to-time and enacted The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018, to prescribe more stringent penal provisions for convicts.
“The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018 provides amongst many other provisions, the death penalty for rape or gang rape of a girl less than 12 years, no anticipatory bail for such crime, completion of investigation in two months, and trials to be completed in two months,” he said. He said the Ministry is supporting States and Union Territories in setting up and strengthening woman help desks in police stations and strengthening Anti Human Trafficking Units in all districts. “The National Database on Sexual Offenders is used by police officers to identify repeat offenders, and receive alerts on sex offenders, as also in the investigation. Police can also use this data for verification requests from various employers for their employees working in vulnerable areas, like educational institutions, hotels, public transportation,” he said.