Amid the outrage over the gangrape of an MBA student in Karnataka's Mysuru, former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy suggested a ‘Hyderabad-like encounter’ as punishment to the accused. The Former Chief Minister and JD(S) leader HD Kumaraswamy was referring to the encounter of the four accused in the Disha gangrape case in December 2019, where the four men were shot dead allegedly while they were fleeing. Kumaraswamy was addressing the media on the recent rape incident in Mysuru, where an MBA student and her boyfriend were attacked while they were on their way to the tourist spot Chamundi Hills. The five men first tried to extort Rs 3 lakh from them, and then attacked the boyfriend and gangraped the survivor.
Addressing the media in Channapatna on August 27, Friday, HD Kumaraswamy said that taking harsh steps like "shoot and kill" is necessary to curb such brutal crimes. Noting the reports that the accused were drinking alcohol at the crime spot, he said that the Karnataka government should bring in tough laws to stop alcohol consumption in deserted places. "I appreciate the Hyderabad police in dealing with a rape case. What did they do finally? Unless stringent action is taken things will not improve,” he said.
Kumaraswamy’s suggestion has been condemned by many, with activists and lawyers calling Kumarasway’s statement irresponsible. Speaking to TNM, Bengaluru-based lawyer Poorna R said that such a statement coming from a public representative was not only irresponsible but detrimental for the judiciary and the mechanism.
“Calling for such extrajudicial killing as a public representative is extremely irresponsible. Extrajudicial killing is the erosion of the law and due processes. It is appalling for a public representative to make such a statement,” she said. She added that the people will not trust the due process of law and judiciary, or the government if public representatives themselves issue statements like that of Kumaraswamy.
Poorna added that the public already feels that those accused in such heinous crimes like rapes should not have the right to defend themselves in court. “When a public representative echoes a similar opinion, the people will not hear the other side of the story, the belief will erode,” she added, saying that due process of law should be followed.
Social activist Mamta, who is a part of the NGO Gamana, said that extrajudicial killing or capital punishment is not a deterrent of crime and observed that the cause of the crime instead should be examined in such cases. “Extrajudicial killing is not right, how many people will we kill? It’s dangerous that young men are indulging in crime due to several socio-economic reasons, the government needs to come up with alternatives. If a public representative issues statements with such irresponsibility, the society will emulate the same,” she said.
The root cause of the issue should be addressed by the public representatives instead of calling for encounters of the accused, activists say.
“Extrajudicial killing is not only illegal, it also is a violation of human rights. Kumaraswamy should have ideally waited for the government and the judiciary to take action and submit their report in the case instead of making irresponsible statements,” opined Shujayath, another social activist.
Mythrei, a lawyer based in Bengaluru, told TNM that public representatives have not only made inappropriate and irresponsible statements, but there have also been similar remarks suggesting a clampdown on the women’s movement. “If a crime, like rape, has been committed, the due process of trying an accused needs to be followed. Public representatives also need to ensure that women’s rights are not clamped upon. By issuing such statements, the leaders are not really ensuring either,” she said. “The comments, as such, evade addressing the real problem — which is that India is a patriarchal society and foundations of patriarchy should be questioned; and the investigation and the judicial system should be strengthened,” she added.