Arunachal Pradesh
File photo: Arunachal Pradesh Assembly

Arunachal Pradesh became the fourth state in the country on Friday after Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Haryana to bring in amendments in the Criminal Law to provide capital punishment (death penalty) to those convicted of raping girls aged below 12 years.

In a historic legislation, the Arunachal Assembly passed the Criminal Laws (Arunachal Pradesh) Amendment Bill that will deal any form of violence against women and children in the state with an iron hand. The Legislative Assembly in its 15th sitting unanimously passed the bill by voice vote. The Criminal Laws (Arunachal Pradesh) Amendment Bill 2018 was tabled by home minister in the House on Friday after a thorough discussion and detailed deliberation.

The bill seeks to amend provisions among others, section 354, 354 (B), 354 (D) of IPC which punishes for outraging the modesty of women by providing harsher punishment up to 7 years and 10 years to the existing provisions and fine to the tune of rupees one lakh.

Further, section 376 AA of the Amendment Bill says, “Whoever commits rape on a woman up to twelve years of age shall be punished with death, or rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than fourteen years but which may extend to imprisonment for life which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person’s natural life, and shall also be liable to fine.”

Section 376 DA says, “Where a woman  up to twelve years of age, is raped by one or more persons constituting a group or acting in furtherance of a common intention, each of those persons shall be deemed to have committed the offence of rape and  shall be punished with death, or rigorous imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than twenty years, but which may extend to imprisonment for life which shall mean imprisonment for the remainder of that person’s natural life, and shall also be liable to fine.”