Protests in Assam over alleged rape, murder

GUWAHATI: Police in Assam's Lakhimpur district are investigating the alleged rape and murder of a woman who was found with multiple injuries and who later died in a hospital, a police official said on Tuesday.

People from different walks of life Tuesday launched protests demanding stern action against the culprits.

Police said the incident took place Sunday. The woman was found with multiple injuries from near the Boginadi police station in the district.

Although she was sent to the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital for treatment, she succumbed to her injuries the same day.

"It is a murder case for sure and we have started investigation to find out the culprits. However, it is difficult to say whether the woman was raped or not," said Lakhimpur Superintendent of Police PK Bhuyan.

"We are waiting for the post-mortem report, which would confirm this," Bhuyan said.

He said the probe was taking time because there was no witness and the accused are yet to be identified. A search operation is on to identify the culprits.
"We could not record the statement of the victim as she was not in a position to talk when we rescued her," the police official said. Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/guwahati/Protests-in-Assam-over-alleged-rape-murder/articleshow/26427173.cms

Tehelka scandal Live: Have asked if FIR can be filed, says Goa CM

Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar has said that he has sought a preliminary enquiry into the matter and would await the findings of the police. “High profile cases need high profile action,” Parrikar said. The Chief Minister said that he has asked the police to see if an FIR can be filed in the case. Parrikar said he had also asked the women’s commission in the state to look into the allegations of sexual assault. 4:45 pm: Tehelka editor says that committee will be formed today, still an internal matter Managing editor Shoma Chadhury said that she was setting up a committee and it would be completed by the evening. “I am being driven by what the aggrieved journalist wants, please let me address her concerns first,” she said. “An apology has been given and the editor has resigned. Are these not actions? What more do you want?” the editor said. Chaudhury has said that the management of the magazine had met all the demands of the aggrieved journalist and if she was upset about it her priority would be to deal with her concerns. She also said that it was still an internal matter and would have remained one until the emails were leaked to the media. “It is not a case. The aggrieved party sent me a mail. She wanted action and it has been taken… It is an internal matter,” Chaudhury said. 3:30 pm: Network of Women in Media protests incident, seeks action An organisation representing women in the media has also protested against the incident and has demanded that the magazine assist the victim in initiating criminal proceedings and action under the sexual harassment act. “At the same time we think it is important for the media to refrain from circulating details that could reveal the survivor’s identity and/or are merely titillating and do not serve any public purpose,” The Network for Women in India said in its statement. 2.57: Goa Police to summon Tarun Tejpal for questioning Sources in the Goa Police have told Times Now that they will summon Tarun Tejpal to Goa for questioning as early as this evening or tomorrow. Earlier today, Goa CM Manohar Parrikar said the government was taking suo moto action in the case and has asked the hotel to hand over CCTV footage of the incident. 2:42 pm: Delhi Union of Journalists condemns incident The Delhi Union of Journalists has also condemned the incident and said that no journalist found guilty of sexual harassment should be let off. 2:30 pm: Shoma Chaudhary seeks more time to respond Under fire managing editor of Tehelka Shoma Chaudhury has requested that the media give her more time to act on the complaint and said she would address all the questions on the matter. “I wont respond to the question at this point. I need more time,” she told reporters outside the Tehelka office in Delhi “I want to address the issues that have been raised.. I understand the need for transparency. Please give me the time to respond to it,” she said. “The way these letters have leaked I have not been able to act in a matter that I would like to,” the editor said. Chaudhury has been under for allegedly playing down the incident and said that despite the seriousness of the incident there was no need to take action hastily. “I am not a fugitive. Tejpal is not a fugitive. The institution is not a fugitive. A grievous incident has taken place,” she said. Chaudhury also said that she was in touch with the victim and was “not mad to say things without being in touch with her”. She did not rule out the possibility that she would hold a press conference later. 2:10 pm: Should Tehelka managing editor face action for ignoring victim 2:05 pm: Essential that Tehelka does the right thing, says Vardrajan Former editor-in-chief of The Hindu Siddharth Vardrajan said that it was important that Tehelka took the appropriate steps to ensure the victim in this case received justice. “You can’t be outraged about what is happening within society unless we have safe working environments for women,” the senior journalist told CNN-IBN. He said it was matter that concerned law, society and it was important that Tehelka did the right thing. 2:00 pm: I&B Minister says they will comment later Minister for Information and Broadcasting Manish Tewari has refused to comment on the issue. “This is a very sensitive issue. We will look into the matter and then comment,” he said. 1:45 pm: Goa Chief Minister Parrikar says they will take action Speaking to Times Now, Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar said that he has been in touch with the police that has now identified the hotel in which the conference the victim referred to was held. “We will take action,” Parrikar said. 1:40 pm: AIPWA chief says victim wants to file case with police Kavitha Krishnan, who heads the All India Progressive Women’s Association (AIPWA) said that she was in touch with the victim in this case and she has every intention about taking the matter to the police. The victim wanted a sexual harassment cell set up in the magazine as well and was seeking more action against Tejpal than what has been done so far, Krishanan said. “The apology is not really an apology… The complainant is not asking for penance but proper process,” Krishnan told CNN-IBN. The magazine should form a inquiry committee to look in to the matter, she said. 1:20 pm: BJP draws parallels with snooping scandal and Tehelka scandal The BJP has decided to go after the Congress and Tehelka over the issue of Tarun Tejpal’s decision to recuse himself as editor-in-chief. “Do they have such a committee on board? Has such an incident taken place in the past?” BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi said. She pointed that Managing Editor Shoma Chaudhary had been protesting rape laws and crimes against women “Some sort of cover up seems to be underway. If the girl has shown the gumption to come out in public we should stand by her,” she said. “I am on purpose trying to draw a parallel between two women. One women is seeking anonymity and it is being violated,” she said. Lekhi accused media persons of covering acts of criminality and said all groups needed to work together to ensure justice is delivered to all women. She also accused the Congress and its surrogates of double standards. “Here when a woman is undergoing all this no help is coming,” Lekhi said. “A private issue should not be sensationalised and a sensational issue should not be covered up,” she said. She accused the media of running a ‘malicious campaign’ against the woman who was seeking privacy in the snooping scandal in Gujarat and even claimed some memos from the Tehelka office had gone missing. 1:00 pm: Goa cops seek CCTV footage from hotel where conference was held CNN-IBN reports that the Goa police is seeking CCTV footage from the hotel in which the alleged incidents of sexual assault took place. This comes despite the woman not filing a complaint with the police in the matter. AFP As reported earlier, in the event of physical abuse the police can take suo motu cognisance of it and file a complaint based on evidence like CCTV footage. 12:30 pm: Woman reiterates that she is unsatisfied with management’s response Times Now quoted the woman as saying that despite the Managing Editor’s claim that she was satisfied with the action taken so far, she was not. “I am disappointed with the response,” she told the news channel. She also reportedly said that others in the magazine were equally unhappy with the action taken by the publication against its editor-in-chief. 12:00 pm: Outrage against Tehelka’s action against Tejpal Many have already begun to question whether the action taken against Tejpal is inadequate. What has sparked further outrage is a statement by Chaudhary that the magazine won’t be instituting an inquiry into the matter and said it was “an internal problem”. Some like Javed Akhtar, who came to Tejpal’s defence, were also roundly chastised. And almost all on Twitter sought further action against Tejpal, with his name and that of the managing editor’s both trending on the micro-blogging site. Even within the journalistic fraternity, on and off Twitter, most backed stronger action against Tejpal. Some like CNN-IBN‘s National Affairs Editor Bhupendra Chaubey were stinging in their criticism of the action taken against Tejpal so far and questioned why the organisation wasn’t taking further action against him or why a body like the National Commission for Women didn’t take action against him. However, practising Supreme Court lawyer Sanjay Hegde said that if the abuse faced by the woman was verbal then it was indeed an internal matter and a committee in Tehelka could decide the action against Tejpal. An internal committee within Tehelka was adequate to decide whether his recusing himself as editor in chief was adequate, Hegde said. “If there was any physical attack, then irrespective of whether the victim complains or not if there is evidence like video recordings, it can be enough for filing of a criminal complaint,” Hegde told CNN-IBN. The woman in her complaint had said that the assault had taken place in an hotel elevator in Goa and according to Hegde, a case could be registered in Goa. Despite the sea of outrage over the incident, Tejpal has maintained a stony silence and apart from Chaudhary’s statement claiming it to be an internal matter, Tehelka has said nothing else. Unfortunately, silence and obfuscation will not help.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/india/tehelka-scandal-live-have-asked-if-fir-can-be-filed-says-goa-cm-1241951.html?utm_source=ref_article

Tourism Industry Jittery

The travel trade and the hospitality industry are keeping their fingers crossed hoping that agitations in the wake of the Centre’s decision to implement the Kasturirangan committee report do not turn away tourists from Kerala.

Violent incidents in Idukki, Wayanad, Kozhikode, and Kannur, Monday’s hartal called the LDF, and the 48-hour “occupy the streets” blockade in Idukki have upset the itinerary of the tourists, both domestic and foreign.

Besides, the hartal and agitations have inconvenienced tour operators and taxi drivers as they cannot honour the travel itinerary of their clients who had made reservations months ago.

On Sunday, three women tourists from the U.S., visiting the State for the first time, had to check out from their hotel at Thekkady at 2 a.m. to reach Munnar before the hartal. As there were no rooms at the hill resort, they were forced to sleep in cars till the tour operator managed to get rooms.

“How can one expect the three to come again for a holiday? The name of the destination is spoiled and many are demanding compensation from us,” says P.K. Anish Kumar of the Association of Tourism and Trade-India (ATTOI).

Many tourists had to rush to another destination and safe places. They were forced to skip destinations and cruise in a houseboat.

“The tourist flow that picked up after Diwali has been hit. The peak season is bad compared to last year and the unrest will result in cancellations in the days ahead,” he adds.

With the peak season on, the stakeholders are worried as tourists are raising queries about safety of favourite spots in Wayanad, Thekkady and Munnar.

Marinne, a tour operator who has been bringing tourists from Sweden to the State for the past 12 years, told The Hindu over the phone from Kochi that the agitations were complicating the travel plans.

“The groups in Thekkady and Fort Kochi were hit. Some are ready to face it. Others were upset as they had to skip places on the itinerary. We are finding it hard to take care of the logistics of the groups,” she adds.

“We give a brief to the tourists and warn them that the State is not like Europe. If the hartal continues, the name of the destination will be affected,” she said.

Chairman, Confederation of Tourism Industry Kerala, E.M. Najeeb said the stakeholders were bringing in tourists from around the world with much difficulty.

‘Wrong message’

“Hartals are giving a wrong message about Kerala and spoiling the reputation of the destination. If this continues, tour operators will be forced to give compensation for inconvenience and disruption caused to the tourists,” he said.

The demand of the tourism industry to exempt them from the hartals had not met with success. As part of mobilising support against the hartals, the ATTOI is organising an online poll.

Source:

http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/tourism-industry-jittery/article5367005.ece

Foreign students coming to India should also feel safe: Tharoor

With a top US official reportedly indicating that frequent instances of rapes in India could possibly be a factor in American students keeping away from the country, government today said if there was such a concern it should be addressed and stressed that ensuring security of students was a priority. Union Minister of State for HRD Shashi Tharoor said there were various reasons, including that Indian universities lacked the reputation to attract foreigners, behind foreign students not coming to India. There was a “lot of pressure” from Indian students feeling that there were not enough seats for them even as very few seats were set aside for foreigners in Indian institutions, he told reporters on the sidelines of a convocation function at Sri Ramachandra University here. Reuters“The second thing is that many of our universities don’t yet have an international reputation to attract foreign students. On the other issue of security and so on, obviously if there is concern for some people, it should be addressed. “We have every desire to keep our own people safe and any foreigner coming to our country should also be allowed to feel safe,” he said. US Ambassador to India Nancy Powell during an interaction with students at Ranchi had reportedly said the concerns over personal security to women as a result of the rape cases could perhaps be a reason for them not coming to India for studies. To a question on setting up IIT in his native state Kerala, Tharoor said, “It is not likely to happen in the lifetime of the present government.” Tharoor said a number of IITs were set up in the last Five Year Plan but Kerala did not get one. “In the current Five Year Plan, no new IIT has been authorised by the Planning Commission or the Cabinet and the policy of the government before we even came to the ministry was that to have efforts to consolidate the existing institutions rather than create any new ones. “Kerala government remains very strongly committed to having an IIT but at this stage, given the procedure involved, it is not likely to happen in the lifetime of the present government,” he said, adding that the issue could be taken up only after the next general elections. He, however, said Kerala was “certainly a knowledge-oriented state” which had the potential to get an IIT. On pending bills of his ministry before Parliament, he said this was the case with every department, with many sessions being disrupted by the opposition. With the coming winter session being a short one, he said maybe one or two might be passed if “we are lucky.” Earlier, the Minister in his convocation address stressed on innovation and cited his own example by highlighting his problems with his spectacles. With Tharoor damaging them by not handling them properly, a friend had come up with an innovative idea where his glasses could be hung around his neck and joined when required. He made a little demo of the innovation that drew loud cheers from the audience.

Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/india/foreign-students-coming-to-india-should-also-feel-safe-tharoor-1241217.html?utm_source=ref_article

'Safety, infrastructure key issues for foreign tourists'

Women’s safety, poor infrastructure and sanitation are the top concerns of international tourists planning a trip to India. In a recent BBC World News India Travel Study, about 66 per cent respondents of the total 441 said that sanitation was a deterrent, while for half of them safety and security was the key concern. Around 33 per cent were worried about the infrastructure of the country.

“Travellers who have not visited India know very little of the country beyond the Taj Mahal and have a vague impression of a noisy, polluted and poor country. They have apprehensions regarding infrastructure, sanitation and safety especially for women,” the survey says.

The reports says the internet is a major source of information for travellers planning a trip to India. While most of the state tourism boards have upped both the frequency of advertisements and marketing budgets in the last few years, the international tourists are yet to be influenced by these ads.

About 85 per cent of the respondents said they had not seen any ad by an Indian state tourism board. A miniscule 15 per cent said they seen and been influenced by advertisements for Kerala, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Goa, Karnataka or Maharashtra.

Some state campaigns, like that of Vibrant Gujarat, do not seem to be working. The state has very little brand recall among tourists, inspite of being a hot investment destination.

“Even as Gujarat ranks high as an investment destination, it is yet to pick up as a preferred destination for international travellers, mainly on account of it being a dry state. Only 1 per cent of the respondents had instant recall. While it has good infrastructure and transport facilities, it is yet to promote destinations such as the Rann of Kutch, Gir Forest and Gandhi Ashram,” the survey said.

On the other hand, Goa has the highest recall value among international tourists. Kerala too had a good brand recall. The  North-East, sadly, has not been able to realize its potential owing to the lack of infrastructure facilities, the survey said.

In the wake of recent crimes against women in the country, female foreign travellers have been concerned about travelling to India. As a result the growth in inbound tourism has slowed.

According to the ministry of tourism data, foreign tourist arrivals (FTAs) from January to September 2013 were 47.41 lakh with a growth of 3.8 per cent, as compared to FTAs of 45.67 lakh with a growth of 5.2 per cent during January to September 2012 over the corresponding period of 2011. The FTAs in India during 2012 were 66.48 lakh registering a growth of 5.4 per cent.

Source:http://newindianexpress.com/business/news/Safety-infrastructure-key-issues-for-foreign-tourists/2013/10/27/article1857483.ece

Rape fear keeps US students out of India: Nancy Powell

 The frequent incidence of rape in India has created an adverse image of India abroad. US ambassador to India, Nancy Powell, on her maiden visit to Jharkhand, on Tuesday highlighted this saying how this was possibly a factor in American students not coming to India.

She said: "The concern for personal security and perceived increased danger to women as a result of the rape cases was perhaps a factor in US students' decision regarding study in India." Powell said this in response to a question - "Why aren't American students coming to India for studies?" - asked in the course of a chat with students' at the Xavier Institute of Social Science (XISS) in Ranchi.

The students at XISS agreed in the presence of Powell that they too face sexual harassment on the streets. "Even we Indian girls face a lot of cat-calls and are subject to teasing outside the college campus almost everyday," said a student, who was part of the interaction session but did not want to be named.

When asked to elaborate, Powell said : "What I said was one of the factors for US students decision regarding study in India." Last year, a female student from Chicago University, who was on a study trip to India, in an account posted on CNN iReport said that India was full of adventures and beauty, but also relentless sexual harassment, groping and worse.

At the interaction with students at XISS, Powell focused on education and people-to-people connection. Following through on the most recent US-India Higher Education Dialogue in New Delhi in June this year, her remarks to the students emphasized: "There is no sector that better illustrates the mutual benefit of our relationship than education, a priority sector for both the US and India. Education has become one of the main pillars in our bilateral strategic partnership."

The US diplomat also made courtesy calls on governor Syed Ahmad and CM Hemant Soren and also met with a varied group of civil society leaders who are alumni of US state department-funded leadership programmes. 

Source:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Rape-fear-keeps-US-students-out-of-India-Nancy-Powell/articleshow/26059607.cms

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