Women just want to breathe freely in society, says Bombay High Court

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court while handing over death sentence to Chandrabhan Sanap for killing Esther Anuhya, voiced concerns over the present scenario in the country. The HC said women in this country do not want to be worshipped but only want to breathe freely.

The landmark verdict by a division bench of Justices Ranjit More and Bharati Dangre, states, “The civilisation of a particular society is measured in terms of how women in the said society are treated. The recent de­velo­p­ments in the few years have gi­ven rise to a feeling of uncertainty and fear in the mi­nd of woman folk in this cou­ntry where women are worshipped in form of goddess.”

“The women in this country may not demand they be worshipped in the modern days scenario but they would surely expect to breathe freely and feel safe and comfortable in and outside their houses,” the order authored by Justice Dangre states.
The judges state how wo­men in India have travelled a long path for their empowerment. “Thus, the state is duty bound to empower them by assuring their safety and security,” the judges have said.

“Offence of rape affects the di­gnity of woman and when a woman is ravished or unde­r­­goes any sexual assault on her dignity, it not only causes physical harm but carries wi­th it a deep sense of some deathless shame. It is then du­ty cast on the judiciary to do justice according to law,” the order reads.As per the bench, rape has always been looked upon as a crime to be ranked alongside murder in terms of seriousness because of the violence and the violation it involves.

“The way, a society protects crime victims is a bar­o­me­ter of that society’s sta­n­d­ards of dignity and de­­cency. When a woman is raped, it is not on­­ly she who is subjected to ra­pe, but it is the tendency that is reflected to overpower, to violate and to hurt the sentiments of the entire woman cr­­e­ed in society,” Justice Dangre has observed in her orders.