Component I (A)- Personal Details

Principal Investigator

Prof. Raghuram Raju

Department of Philosophy,
University of Hyderabad

Paper Coordinator

Aakash Singh Rathore

Content Writer

Garima Goswamy

Department of Political Science,

LUISS University of Rome
Independent Research Scholar

Content Reviewer
Language Editor

Component I (B)- Description of Module

Subject name

Philosophy

Paper Name

Philosophy of Law

Module Name/Title

Understanding precepts of Criminality and Security

for Risk Mitigation

Module Id

Module No. 38

Prerequisites

Module No. N

Objectives

The objective of this module is know about important

features of Philosophy of Security namely detection,
delay, deterrence and response

Key words

Nirbhaya Rape Case, Indias Daughter, Deterrence,

Detection, Delay

Component II: e- Text : Philosophy of Law Module 38

Understanding precepts of Criminality and Security for Risk Mitigation

(38.1.) Introduction
Risk Mitigation is an important tool in a world where there is criminality is increasing
consistently over the past decade. This module is going to focus on a mechanism of risk
mitigation by introducing what security professionals understand as 3Ds and R concept. The three
Ds are detect, deter, delay and R stands for response. Both criminals and security professionals
understand this philosophy. An effective implementation after comprehending the importance of
this concept results in or is bound to result in a stable risk mitigation technique. Laxity in such
implementation may result, as it has before, into increase or continuance of criminality in a
rampant manner. The role of the government and the judiciary is of paramount importance in
effective implementation of control measures. In this module, this philosophy of security will be
explained with the example of Violence against Women in the National Capital Region of India.
Reference might be made to other cities, wherever relevant.
(38.2.) Why Eve Suffers
In Buddhism, there are four noble truths to self discovery pertaining to suffering: There is
suffering, there is a cause of suffering, there is cessation of suffering and there is a path that leads
to the cessation of suffering. Equating suffering with crime, one can rephrase and say, there is
crime, there is a cause of crime, there is cessation of crime and there is a path that leads to the
cessation of crime.
The wisdom of Buddhism actually served the purpose to understand how to avoid crisis situations
faced by the fairer sex on a daily basis in National Capital Delhi (NCR). Besides an independent
researcher, in my capacity as a security professional in 2011, findings of a trend analysis of
violent crimes against women was undertaken by me and shared with my superiors at a private
organization. Insights of the same shall be shared as part of this module.
This section is entitled Why Eve Suffers because besides finding out the reasons for suffering (that
is crime) Indian women may be compared to Eve of Christian Mythology. Defying the rules set
by the creator, Eve brought misery and human banishment to earth from the Garden of Eden, says
Christianity. Roaming at odd hours, dressed provocatively, certain women are responsible for
bringing suffering upon themselves, say some prominent political figures and certain section of
society. Such thinking is one of the causes of continuation of crime, as shall be discussed in a
later section.
If I were a criminal, it would be important for me that
1.
2.
3.
4.

My crime is not detected.

If detected, there is delay in my arrest or my prosecution
I should chose a crime in which there is minimal loss to me in an event of a prosecution
Even if I am prosecuted, I should still be able to find some support in society despite my
actions.

It is with this reasoning that criminals plan their crimes and it is by understanding this manner of
thinking that law enforcement and judiciary can prevent or curb crimes.
(38.2.1) Detection
A criminal needs to know that his acts will not be easily detected. This is why he would choose a
victim who is less likely to tell or inform authorities. Be it an underage child or a toddler, a
foreigner who lost her way in Connaught Place. A five year old child brutally raped and strangled
with the attempt to kill her by Bihari migrants, or groups of men who patrol the city from
Gurgaon or NOIDA borders targeting a woman of North East Indian origin, Moreover, as rape is
associated with shame, potential rapists and rapists abandon their victims assuming that no
complaints will be made against them for this reason.
Child abuse is a classic example. Quite often, children of very young age are not able to realise
that they are being violated. Infants and idiots, for instance, are unable to communicate a
wrongdoing done to them. At times, abusers try to instil fear in some of their victims that if they
will inform their parents or guardian, the abuser will kill the childs parent and/or guardian. Most
cases of child abuse take place by family members who train the child to keep their dirty little
secret.
In Bangalore, the modus operandii of a gang, which was eventually busted, revealed how
criminals, relied on their acts not being detected. They would target North Eastern Indian women
to rape. Choosing of victims included days of surveillance. They would choose those women who
worked in Multinational companies and stayed by themselves in flats of Paying Guest
accommodations. They would rape these women and make videos and threaten to post these on
the internet to buy their silence. They would remind the shame these women would bring to their
family, should they reveal about these incidents. In North Eastern India, where community are
close-knot and has a lot of say in family structures, these threats were considered by victims.
Women of North East Indian origin who stay in the Indian Capital are also chosen precisely
because many times criminal assume that it will be hard for them to go to the cops with a
complaint, as they lack the requisite social support in the city. Moreover, even if they were to
make a complaint, it would be linguistically a problem for them as many such women cannot
speak fluent Hindi, a language most understood by law enforcement officers in Delhi. In one such
case in 2010, positioning of Police Control Room Vans and lack of understanding English by
policemen was criticized. This is because post the abduction of a girl when an eye witness went to
make a complaint, there was delay due to a language problem in the flashing of the message
about the incident to the control room.
In most cases of crime, the criminals de-capacitate their victims and potential eye witness (by
beating them up, confiscating wallets and mobile phones) to the effect that they cannot lodge a
complaint easily. Rapes have started taking place in moving vehicles precisely to avoid eye
witnesses, so that the crime cannot be detected.
(38.2.2) Delay

From the assumption that some crimes are less likely to be detected, the next logical thought for
criminals is that should their crimes be detected, there should be sufficient delay or cause of
delay. That would give them time to plan an escape. As mentioned, this actually happened in the
Delhi Gang rape case which took place in 2010. In an interesting case reported by media in 2010,
potholes slowed down a car chase and an abduction was eventually prevented.
Moreover, justice delayed is justice denied. And delay in getting justice is often used by potential
criminals and criminals to conduct their activities. In certain cases, crime then becomes a habit as
the criminal is used to using the loopholes of a slow justice system to his or her favour.
During the trend analysis study in 2011, I visited Delhi Polices Crime Against a Woman Cell at
Nanakpura. Besides gathering research material and speaking to victims of some crimes, I also
chanced upon the procedure to go about filing a complaint at such a cell. As most of the cases of
crime against women used to be domestic cases, there were counselling centres within the Cell
where conflicting parties would meet after a police inspector assessed the authenticity of a
complaint. For it was a usual practise in Civil cases of Divorces to also file a Criminal Case by
some women. Once a complaint was found to be genuine, the other party would be summoned. It
was only after intervention and counselling sessions upon being summoned, that lower courts
were set up at a later date. The First Investigation Reports were usually filed towards the end. The
exceptions were cases of immediate violence in which the police would come to the victims
rescue the moment any complaint was made at the police control room. The Cell located at
Nanakpura was one of the best Crime Against Women Cell in Delhi which is why many people
preferred coming here, although it did not fall in the jurisdiction for some visitors. Most of them
were then advised to go to the appropriate Cells. While the system, despite some flaws, seemed
to have worked at a satisfactory level, there was one case where filing a complaint became a
problem at the Cell. A woman wished to file a complaint against a neighbour who had threatened
her life over a property dispute. As most of the cases, (almost 90-99%) were those of domestic
abuse, ludicrous as it sounds, the mechanism did not allow her filling a complaint at the Cell with
as much convenience as other cases were being dealt with, because the attacker was not related to
the supposed victim. She had to wait for a senior member of police force or come at a later date.
Despites loopholes in the administrative systems, some lacuna of the legal system with respect to
protection of women against crimes saw some relief. This was when as an aftermath of the
infamous Nirbhaya Rape Case, the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act 2013 was implemented.
The Nirbhaya Rape Case refers to a rape which took place on December 16, 2012 in a bus during
evening hours of a student who was accompanied with a male friend. It was of an extremely
gruesome nature to the effect that the victims intestines were removed and thrown along with her
and her friends naked bodies after multiple assaults. This had led to nationwide outcry and India
saw a mass movement not led by any particular leader as the aftermath of the same. Such form of
protest over gender violence was unprecedented. It gained national attention when Ms. Jaya
Bachchan, an actor and a member of the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of the Parliament), spoke
about it (or rather tried to speak up about this case as the speaker tried to restrict her due to lack
of time to accommodate other Ministers of Parliaments to discuss other issues). She mentioned
how the journalist handling this case was manhandled. She voiced her opinions in the media too
along with other film personalities. The student population at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU)

were among few who started the protest. Water cannons, baton charge and tear gas were used at
peaceful protestors at India Gate, who kept on coming back to join the protest till a resolution was
sought. These protests unified civil society against crime against a woman.
For speeding up rape prosecutions, the governments response was formation of six-fast track
courts to speed up justice. The guilty verdict of the Nirbhaya Rape Case came out in September
2013 while that of another infamous 2010 Delhi gang rape case of a North East Indian 30 year old
BPO employee came out in 2014 through such a fast track court. Many criticise that the severity
of the crime in this case, the act and other such measures were the result of a procrastination of
the Indian Government over issues of gender equality and gender violence, as was evident in the
Rajya Sabha session where sufficient time was not allocated to leaders to speak about gender
issues. As per media statistics, in 2012 there were 705 other cases where no conviction had taken
place. Also, between December 16, 2012 and January 2013, only four inquiries were launched
when in fact there were as many as 64 rape cases and nearly 500 cases of harassment filed with
the Delhi Police.
A significant verdict of the Supreme Court which will set precedent in protection of women by
curbing delay in justice was made in 2014 when the bench argued that delay in filing FIR is not a
basis by which an accused can defeat a supposed victims testimony. Social stigma, psychological
trauma and delay in medical treatment to acquire normalcy were recognized as causes for delay in
reporting a case of rape. Moreover, considering the social structure of society where often the
protocol is to discuss the issue prior to filing a report, such delays were considered
understandable. In the particular case which issued this verdict, there was delay of a married
Indian woman to inform her husband about the fact that she was raped by a neighbour in
Chandigarh.
Moreover, the Sexual Harassment Act of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and
Redressal) Act 2013 has set a number of timelines on employers with respect to effective
implementation of the salient provisions of this act. For instance, any inquiries must be completed
within 90 days of a complaint being filed. Companies which publish an annual report are to
mention the number of cases filed each year by an Internals Complaint Committee. It is
mandatory that salient points of this Act are presented conspicuously at all the offices/premises of
a company. Failure to comply by this act more than once may lead to a fine of INR50,000 and
may even result in dissolution of the company/employer entity in question.
(38.2.3) Deterrence
Delay is one factor criminals reply upon, speeding up of conviction is likely to make them think
twice before committing another act of crime. More significant than delay is deterrence for it is
the ideology that by imposing harsher punishment on convicted criminals, potential criminals are
unlikely to commit similar crimes. While in order to combat delay, both police officials and
judicial authorities are required to form a good security setup, to ensure effective deterrence the
onus of responsibility lies on an effective judicial system.
As mentioned before, another significant aftermath of the Nirbhaya Rape Case was the Criminal
Law (Amendment) Act 2013. The definition of rape, which previously was restricted to vaginal

penetration, was broadened. Another significant change was that lack of physical resistance was
made immaterial to the act of rape. The definition of statutory rape was also changed as the age of
consent was increased to 18 years. As there were increasing cases of acid attack, sexual
harassment, voyeurism, stalking, new acts were introduced to make these punishable offenses
within the Indian Penal Code. Gang rapes are increasing probably because these give criminals
additional support to empower victims, additional mobility to escape, have a comrade on guard
for any alerts against any police action or action by a vigilante etc. The law has extended
punishment for gang rape to 20 years to life imprisonment. Those convicted of rape may also be
sentenced to life imprisonment as in the case of the convicts of the 2010 Delhi BPO Employee
gang rape.
Moreover, the Sexual Harassment Act of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and
Redressal) Act 2013 is an act which will hold an employer responsible even if a female employee
is harassed while she is travelling to or from a workplace.
(38.2.4) Response
One of the most significant features which allows penetration of or can help curb crime is how
the society responds to criminals and crimes. It is lack of proper response to crime against women
which leads to continuation of such crime. Indias social set up is such that often to make sense of
criminality, victims of criminality are scrutinized and their behaviour is blamed. So for instance,
rape victims are often blamed in India to dress provocatively, to provoke a criminal, to roam the
town during inappropriate hours with inappropriate company, to be like Eve, who ate the apple,
despite being advised not to do so. This is one of the reasons that while superficially, the trend
analysis study seemed fairly simple, when understood in the social and political context, it was
initially extremely difficult to proceed.
This is perhaps because for thousands of years, women have had to adjust in a world created by
men. Such adjustment often leads women to be invented in the image of a mans image of a
woman. Very often this leads to lack of acknowledgment of a problem or lack of response. And
eventually it may lead to a worrying proposition that women are to blame for the fate they bring
upon themselves, not conforming to social norms or treading with caution. Luckily, this had been
a matter of discussion and debate with respect to bringing reforms in perceiving women in India.
In March 2015, eminent politicians who were also film personalities including Mrs. Bachchan,
Mr. Javed Akhtar, and Mrs. Kiron Kher voiced the need for such reforms and also criticised the
attitude of victimizing the victim by blaming women to dress promiscuously. A British
Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) Documentary called Indias Daughter ignited this debate. In this
documentary, a rapist blamed the victim who was subjected to brutal rape in which her intestines
were taken out. The rapist who was interviewed rapist is on death row in the infamous Nirbhaya
Rape Case.
Even during 2012 protests over Nirbhaya Rape Case, Mr. Abhijit Mukherjee, the son Mr. Pranab
Mukherjee, Indias 13th President, was criticized for making sexist comments about women
protestors at India Gate. He had called them dented and painted and mentioned these women
frequent discotheques suggesting a promiscuous non Indian behaviour of these protestors.

Besides the rapist and the Presidents son, defence lawyers Advocate A.P. Singh and Advocate
M.L. Sharma were also known to have made tasteless remarks both during trial, in the
documentary and after the release of the documentary in India was under discussion.
One comment made was like women are like diamonds and men are like dogs and diamonds need
to be protected else dogs will devour them. What was implied was that women should not stay
out late hours and unaccompanied by family members. Singh made even more radically offensive
remarks about women in India who invite trouble by imbibing western culture and staying out
during late hours. He is also known to have gone on record to say that if his daughter ever
engaged in shaming the family name by going out with a boy which he equated to having
engaged in pre marital sex, he would shoot her in his farm house in front of all his relatives as an
act of justified honour killing. Singh also participated in a wager with a Radio Jockey of Radio
Channel 91.1. His claim was that majority of Indians would support his views and if that was not
the case, he would not defend the accused in this case. He lost as most viewers did not share his
thoughts. However, before he could revert the Bar Council of India issued show cause notices
against both lawyers to have made such offensive remarks in public.
Indias Daughter which was centred around these protests in the context of the infamous rape
case, was censored in India not only because the case was sub judicial for it would have interfered
with his plea against capital punishment, but because to interview a rapist was considered
reprehensible by many leaders discussing the issue in the Rajya Sabha. Akhtar pointed out that
this view was expressed openly by many men in gatherings of Rajya Sabha.
Philosophically, this myth that victims are to be blamed for crimes also points to an informal
fallacy of logic, known as the fallacy of false cause. Before blame can be assigned to anyone for
the crime or the reasons can be revealed about why such crimes take place, it is important to
know what does not cause crime. And dressing sense is one of them. In the 2011 trend analysis
study, upon analysing violent crimes against women of different age groups, results showed that it
could not possibly be the dressing sense. This is because if one were to look at the percentages of
target victim of sexual crimes against women, it is observed that majority of victims in 2011,
were in the age groups of 18 years and below and 38 years and above. It is hard to believe that
minors and considerably aged women, who attribute 52.39 percent of victims of sexual crimes,
wear provocative clothes and invite trouble.
Playing the devils advocate, one may argue that considering that 50 percent of victims of sexual
harassment victims belonged to North Eastern States of India, as asserted by a senior police
official, the dressing style of such women, as well as their distinctive features might be factors
which allowed them to be victimized. If one were to follow the philosophy of security identified
by detection, delay, response, and deterrence, understanding the actual reasons why North Eastern
women are often subjects of such crimes will make more sense.
While Indias Daughter was banned and there are several people whose response is not as
conscientious as it should be to prevent and curb criminality in society, the silver lining is that
there are a lot many people who have come to understand that crime the proper response is not to
blame the victim but the criminal. Awareness about crimes, laws protecting women, helplines,
phone applications with GPS trackers, technological surveillance tools etc. may prevent or curb

criminals from committing crimes and a public disapproval of crime against women and reduce
apathy created over decades in Delhi NCR.
(38.3) Conclusion
To prevent any form of crime, it is important to understand that crimes can be prevented and
curbed if one understands the importance of detection, delay, deterrence and response in the
philosophy of security. Crime against women has been discussed within this framework.
However, it is noteworthy that this philosophy of security is applicable with respect to risk
mitigation of any form of danger or threat be it terrorist activity, bank robbery, or any other crime.

Component III: e-Tutorials: Video (to be added)

Component IV: Supporting Material:
The following reading material is recommended:
Homeland Security 2011 Building safe and secure Indian Cities - a perspective, Ernst and Young,
viewed:
on:
http://www.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/Homeland_Security_2011_Building_safe_and_secur
e_Indian_cities%E2%80%94a_perspective/$FILE/Homeland_security.pdf.
Gruber. Robert, Perimeter Security: Deter, Detect, Delay, Deny, Master Halco Security
Solutions Group.
Thomas, Abraham. "Delay in Lodging FIR Natural in Rape Cases: SC" October 2, 2014;
http://www.dailypioneer.com/nation/delay-in-lodging-fir-natural-in-rape-cases-sc.html
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act
2013, Ministry of Law and Justice. Government of India. Delhi: Controller of Publications: Delhi;
http://www.iitbbs.ac.in/notice/sexual-harrassment-of-women-act-and-rules-2013.pdf
The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, Ministry of Law and Justice. Government of India.
Delhi: Controller of Publications: Delhi; http://indiacode.nic.in/acts-in-pdf/132013.pdf
News Bureau, How potholes saved Delhi teen from kidnapping, New Delhi: Midday, July 25,
2011,
11:53
IST,
http://www.ndtv.com/delhi-news/how-potholes-saved-delhi-teen-fromkidnapping-462717
Gangrape
Case:
Jaya
Bachchan
threatens
to
protest
in
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fLoph-ALEo viewed April 13, 2015

Rajya

Sabha

Singh, Smriti. "Ghastly rapes Delhi's undoing for long" TNN, December 18, 2012 2:10 IST;
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/delhi/Ghastly-rapes-Delhis-undoing-forlong/articleshow/17657414.cms

Component V: Assessment and Evaluation:

Multiple Choice Questions with Answer-

Q.1. How many noble truths are there in Buddhism?

A. One
B. Two
C. Three
D. Four
Q.1. Answer: D

Q.2. Which character from Christian Mythology is comparable to Indian Women?

A. Virgin Mary
B. Serpent
C. Eve
D. Adam

Q.2. Answer: C

Q.3. Which Radio station wagered with Advocate A. P. Singh?

A. Radio Mirchi 98.5 FM
B. Radio City 91.1 FM
C. Fever 104 FM
D. Radio One 94.3 FM

Q.3. Answer: B

Q.4. What is the name of the BBC Documentary banned in India which was covered the issue of
gender violence?
A. Indias Daughter
B. The Story of India
C. The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst
C. Forty Minutes

Q.4. Answer: A

Q.5. Who called women protestors dented and painted?

A. Pranab Mukherjee
B. Advocate A. P. Singh
C. Abhijit Mukherjee
D. Javed Akhtar

Q.5. Answer: C

True/False statements with answers

Q.6 True/False
Presence of a pothole prevented abduction by causing delay during a car chase.
Q.6. Answer: True

Q.7. A convict in the Nirbhaya Rape case did not blame the victim.

Q.7. Answer: False

Q.8. True/False
The intestines of the victim in the December 16, 2012 rape case were taken out and thrown.
Q.8. Answer: True

Q.9. True/False
Students from Jawaharlal Nehru University participated in the Delhi protests of 2012 after the
Nirbhaya Rape Case
Q.9. Answer: True
Q. 10 True or False?
The dressing sense of women provokes men to rape women and not underage children.
Q. 10 Answer: False