While the inclusion of stalking as a separate category under the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) remains an afterthought for the powers-that-be, cases of stalking deaths continue to pile up in Delhi. In a fresh case of violence, a young woman was stabbed to death by her stalker in a shopping plaza in Greater Noida.
The accused, Kuldeep Singh, also attempted to kill himself but was rushed to the hospital. His condition is currently critical. Eyewitnesses claim that Singh had arrived at the mall around 11.30 am. The woman, Khushboo, who worked at the mall, was stabbed by Singh multiple times when she took a break to go to the washroom on the first floor.
Singh tried to escape the scene of the crime, but seeing that the police had already arrived he tried to kill himself. However, cops made sure he was rushed to the hospital. The woman was a resident of Dadri, where she lived with her family members.
Police statistics show that there has been a significant rise in stalking deaths in Delhi-NCR. Credit: The Indian Express
The woman’s relatives claimed she was being stalked for the past few months. “Three months ago, Khushboo had told us that a guy was stalking her on a motorcycle from Dadri to her workplace in Jagat Farm market. We then arranged an auto-rickshaw for her to go to work as she used to travel in shared autos. But the stalking and harassment did not stop and Khushboo complained to us again. We then went to Kuldeep’s house in Gautampuri in Dadri and warned his parents that we will file a police complaint if he continued,” Khushboo’s mother Anita Devi told Hindustan Times.
Between 2014 and 2017, over 18,000 cases of stalking had been registered, according to the home ministry’s records. The anti-stalking laws of the country have often been called out for not being foolproof. Section 354D of the Indian Penal Code states, “Any man who follows a woman and contacts, or attempts to contact such woman to foster personal interaction repeatedly despite a clear indication of disinterest by such woman or monitors the use by a woman of the internet, email or any other form of electronic communication, commits the offence of stalking.”
The law mandates that if found guilty of stalking then the first time offenders could be imprisoned for up to three years. Repeat offenders would be jailed for up to five years. According to police statistics, there has been a sharp rise in stalking cases in the national capital — 1,128 cases were reported in 2015 as against 542 in 2014.
In March this year, Delhi court said that the judiciary should take stalking cases seriously due to rising cases of crimes against women. The court observed that if the perpetrators are “not treated”, they become dangerous over time and may threaten the lives of women.
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