Kolkata:West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has yet again written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding a stringent law with provisions of exemplary punishment for rape.
This is her second letter barely a week after she wrote to the PM on August 22 seeking an urgent need for a Central legislation on incidents of rape and exemplary punishment to perpetrators of such crimes.
Referring to her earlier letter, Banerjee wrote, "No reply was received from your end on such a sensitive issue. However, a reply has been received from the Minister of Women and Child Development, Government of India, which barely attends the gravity of the issue raised in my letter. I am of the thought that the seriousness of the subject and its relevance to the society have not been adequately appreciated while sending out this generic reply."
Listing out the steps her government has taken regarding setting up of Fast Track Special Courts to deal with cases related to heinous crimes, the CM has said, "I would reiterate and earnestly request to kindly consider a stringent Central legislation and exemplary punishment on heinous crimes of rape/rape and murder with mandatory provision for disposal of cases in a specific time-frame by the trial authorities."
Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee had also advocated for a stringent law against the heinous crime with death penalty. While addressing rally on the occasion of the foundation day of the party's students wing, Abhishek had said, he intends to introduce a private member’s bill in the next session of the Parliament with stricter punishment for perpetrators of rape.