Abstract
Raped persons are the most common forms of sexual violence in the world. In India, rape is one of the leading causes of death. Despite this, in India, socioeconomic factors have a significant impact on the occurrence of various raped cases in India. This paper aims to shed light on multifaceted nature of rape crimes and complex interplay of socioeconomic variables influencing their occurrence. In this paper, we explore the interconnectedness of these factors and their impact on various sex violence cases in different states of India. The research paper focuses on the interplay of poverty, education, gender inequality, and urbanization. Moreover, the study utilizes regression modeling to investigate the correlation between socioeconomic indicators (such as poverty rate, literacy rate, and gender disparity index) and raping cases in various states. The findings of this study provide valuable insights for policymakers, practitioners, and activists working to address sexual violence, ultimately fostering safer and more equitable society for all individuals. Moving forward, concerted efforts are needed to tackle the structural inequalities in Indian society and cultural norms perpetuating sexual violence cultures. By examining various socioeconomic factors this paper provides insights into the underlying determinants of rape incidents and proposes potential strategies for mitigating this pervasive issue in Indian society.
Keywords : Rape, socioeconomic factors, India, Gender Inequality, Urbanization, Education, Poverty, Sexual violence
Introduction
Rape is not a new phenomenon. In fact, it is probably as old as the first human beings who walked the earth. But what important here is how some socioeconomic factors has its impact on rape incidents in India. Basically, Rape is an unlawful sexual activity, most often involving sexual intercourse, against the will of the victim through force or threat of force. In many jurisdictions, the crime of rape has been subsumed under that of sexual assault. Around the world, rape is a serious violation of human rights and a major public health issue. Despite this, in India socioeconomic factors effects in India’s rape incidents. There is a famous saying that “Rape is not about sex it’s about power and control” incapsulates a fundamental understanding of sexual violence and which is important to understand interrelation between socioeconomic factors and Rape incidents in India.
Factors contribute to the prevalence of rape incidents in India, including social roles and status, poverty, unemployment, superstitious beliefs, religion and caste, and marriage and dowry practices. Furthermore, the paper examines the interconnectedness of these factors and their influence on the occurrence of rape incidents.
Research Methodology
This paper is of descriptive nature and the research is based one secondary sources for the deep analysis of socioeconomic factors like poverty, gender inequality, education and many more to understand its impact on rape incidents in Indian society and further by understanding this to work and focus on decreasing the rape cases indifferent states of India. Secondary sources of information like newspapers, journals, articles, and different websites are used for doing this research.
Review of literature
There are numerous studies have examined the interrelation between socioeconomic factors and rape incidents in India, highlighting the complex interplay of poverty, education, gender inequality and urbanization. Several studies suggest a correlation between poverty and the prevalence of rape in India. Economic deprivation can exacerbate vulnerability, leading individuals, particularly women and children, to engage in risky behaviors or become targets of sexual violence. Lack of economic opportunities and financial autonomy may force women into situations where they are more susceptible to exploitation and abuse, contributing to higher rape rates in impoverished communities. Education plays a crucial role in shaping attitudes towards gender equality and consent. Studies have shown that higher levels of education are associated with lower incidences of rape. Lack of education, particularly among males, may perpetuate traditional gender norms and stereotypes, fostering a culture of male dominance and entitlement, which contributes to the normalization of sexual violence.
The process of urbanization and the movement of people from rural to urban areas have considerable consequences for the dynamics of rape in India. In urban areas, there is often a higher incidence of reported rape cases due to various factors, including anonymity, the erosion of traditional social structures, and exposure to diverse cultural influences. Migrants, especially women and children, are particularly susceptible to exploitation and sexual violence as they often lack the necessary social support networks and encounter difficulties in accessing legal and protective services.
India’s deeply ingrained male-dominated society perpetuates gender inequity and power disparities, leading to the acceptance of rape and various other forms of sexual violence. Social norms that prescribe women’s subservient positions, limited independence, and constrained freedom of movement foster an atmosphere in which perpetrators feel emboldened to carry out sexual offenses without consequence, while victims often encounter social stigma, blame, and obstacles when seeking legal recourse.
The connection between socioeconomic factors and instances of rape in India is intricate. Resolving this multifaceted problem necessitates a comprehensive strategy that tackles underlying causes, advances gender equality, empowers marginalized communities, improves access to education and economic prospects, fortifies legal frameworks, and encourages a shift in cultural attitudes towards consent and respect for human rights.
Rape is a heinous crime that continues to plague societies around the world, including in India. The impact of socioeconomic factors on the prevalence of rape incidents in India is a topic of significant interest and concern. Socioeconomic factors such as poverty, income inequality, education levels, and gender norms contribute to the occurrence of rape incidents in India (Rashada & Sharaf, 2016).
Basically, it talks about the multifaceted nature of women’s health and rights in India, emphasizing the interplay between socio-cultural factors and government policies (Sengupta & Mukherjee, 2018). It also identifies key themes related to socioeconomic factors, including social, economic, and cultural factors (Simon‐Kumar, 2014).
The research paper also highlights the intersectionality of these socioeconomic factors, emphasizing how individuals living in poverty, facing unemployment or job insecurity, and experiencing marginalization and inequality are at a higher risk of being affected by rape incidents.
Instances of workplace sexual assault are examples where socioeconomic factors have played a significant role.
Rape cases in India which has impact of socioeconomic factors
1.Nirbhaya Rape case
The gang rape and murder of a young woman on a bus in Delhi highlighted issues of gender inequality, urbanization, and weak law enforcement. The case was talking about how gender equality an important socioeconomic factor has its impact on rape case India.
2. Kathua rape case
The abduction, rape, and murder of an 8year old girl in Jammu and Kashmir exposed the influence of social as well as political factor as these are interrelated with socioeconomic factor including communal tensions on handling of rape cases. The victims marginalized socioeconomic background also played a role in delayed justice which affects obviously the rape case indirectly or directly.
3.Badaun rape case
The gang rape and murder of teenage girls from a low-income family in Uttar Pradesh underscored the intersection of poverty and vulnerability of sexual violence. As mentioned, that poverty is one of the most important socioeconomic factors that has its impact on rape cases in India.
4.Rohtak Sisters assault case
Two sisters were filmed fighting off three men who allegedly attempted to sexually assault them on a bus in Haryana. The incident shed light on the prevalence of sexual harassment and the societal pressures faced by victims to remain silent. It also merely focused on socioeconomic factors that has its impact on rape incidents in Indian society.
All the cases stated above have more or less socioeconomic impacts on them, whether it’s being the Nirbhaya rape case, Rohtak sisters, whichever has impact of socio-economic factors affecting them. There is growing consensus that a major cause of the rape problem is the subordinate position of the women in the social, political, and economic order. Despite this consensus, there have been few structural analyses of rape and inequality. Their findings show that gender income inequality is a significant contributor to rape.
Rape is considered the most horrific crime perpetrated against women, and statistics show that rape is very common in India. There is a significant difference between will and consent. There is a proper definition of consent under the Indian Penal Code. To understand different socioeconomic factors why not to understand what the laws are made for one who rapes.
Rape is violative of the victim’s fundamental right under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. It is the most morally and physically abhorrent crime in society since it violates the victim’s body, mind, and privacy. A rape victim cannot be considered an accomplice in any way. Because rape leaves a lifelong mark on the victim’s life, a rape victim is held in more regard than an injured witness. Rape is a crime against a society that infringes on the victim’s human rights. Rape, as the most despised crime, is a devastating blow to a woman’s greatest honor, and offends both her esteem and dignity. When it talks about human rights and society where there comes the socioeconomic factor it’s not just about the socioeconomic together but also about the social and economic factors alone.
Section 375 talks about some clauses a man is said to commit rape if he;
- Penetrates his penis into a woman’s vagina, mouth, urethra, or anus to any amount, or forces her to do so with him or anybody else; or
- Inserts any object or portion of the body, other than the penis, into the vagina, urethra, anus, or any other part of her body, or forces her to do so with him or another person; or (commonly known as digital rape)
- Manipulates any part of a woman’s body to produce penetration into the vagina, urethra, anus, or any other part of her body, or forces her to do so with him or anybody else; or
4. Applying his tongue to a woman’s vagina, anus, or urethra, or forcing her to do so with him or another person, or
5. Any of the seven clauses laid down under Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. The provision embraced with seven clauses that majorly lays down circumstances that if takes place, can be quoted to be amounting to the offence of rape.
Why this become an important under socioeconomic factors is to know about rape laws or a person is said to be rape because understanding socioeconomic factors impact, we must know what rape is? what are the rape laws? especially section 375.
Understanding consent
Why understanding consent becomes important here is because Rape, at its core, is a violation of consent. Understanding what consent is clarifies the issue and helps in dissecting the power dynamics and societal norms that contribute to rape incidents which will help one to delve into deeper understanding of socioeconomic factors impact on rape incidents.
It also helps in understanding deep root cause as Socioeconomic factors can influence attitudes towards consent, access to information about consent, and vulnerability to coercion. Exploring the link between these factors and consent sheds light on potential root causes of rape.
Let’s understand what basically consent is? Consent refers to an activity done by a person under a free state of mind. According to Merriam Webster, consent refers to an act committed by a person by giving assent and approval. According to Section 375 consent can be referred to as an unequivocal voluntary agreement when a woman by communication, verbal, or non-verbal, shows her willingness to commit a specific act. The core concept under consent is choice, and not will. To interpret consent, it is necessary to prove: The person can give consent; and the person, with his free choice, has accepted the act.
Marital Rape
Now let us understand how Marital rape is essential to understand the impact of socioeconomic factors on rape incidents in Indian society. By focusing on marital rape, we can delve into how societal norms, patriarchal structures, and economic dependence within marriages intersect with socioeconomic factors to create unique vulnerabilities and challenges for victims.
Marital Rape is a debatable concern. On May 11, 2022, the Delhi High Court issued its long-awaited decision on the criminalization of marital rape. The bench couldn’t decide whether a sexual act committed by a man on his wife without her consent should be regarded a criminal or not, therefore it issued a divided decision. The Supreme Court will now hear the case, which is still unsettled. The case is around Exception 2 of Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code, which provides that any sexual act performed by a man on his own wife, even if done without her consent, is not rape if she is not a minor. If statistics in this regard is given a chance to be viewed then according to the National Family Health Survey 5 (2019-2021) study, 18% of Indian women are unable to tell their husbands ‘No’ when they do not want to participate in sexual intercourse with them. According to the report, over one-fifth of married women in India had their permission in sexual intercourse with their spouses revoked. With such terrible statistics and conflicting judicial opinions, all one can expect in this regard is progressive and rational thinking regarding marital rape in India.
Impacts of socioeconomic factors on different types of rape incidents, including marital rape, non-marital rape, and rape against children all are as important as marital rape in India. It’s the issue to focus on and on which these socioeconomic factors play an important role.
Socio cultural factors
Socioeconomic factors dont operate in a vaccum it has diverse regions and one of them is socio cultural aspect which is important. They intertwine with deeply ingrained socio-cultural beliefs, norms, and power dynamics that contribute to a context where rape occurs. Analyzing these aspects unveils the complex interplay that fosters a culture of violence against women. Rape is often not just a physical act, but a manifestation of systemic gender inequality. Examining socio-cultural norms surrounding masculinity, femininity, sexuality, and consent reveals how these norms disadvantage women and create environments where men feel entitled to exert control through violence. Understanding socio cultural aspects is essential for a comprehensive understanding of the topic and will help us to delve deeper into the topic. The intensity and frequency of rapes and attempted sexual assaults on women, along with several unreported cases, are rising alarmingly in countries including India. National Crime Records Bureau in 2018 reported one rape every 15 min in India. Additionally, according to the NCRB data, up to 91 rapes were reported in the country on a single day.
1.Attitude towards rape
The first theme that emerged was the attitude of the respondents towards rape, the perception and approach towards sex and the deep-rooted beliefs of myths among individuals are associated with the lack of appropriate awareness and understanding of women. Three sub-themes emerged with respect to this theme—lack of awareness, attitude towards women and relationships, and misperceptions about women.
2.Lack of awareness
People believe that in the Indian culture, it is uncustomary to acknowledge when a person is incorrect, especially when it is attributed to topics like sex or rape. Most individuals tend to live with misconceptions rather than educating themselves, which increase the probability of criminal acts against women, including rape. Thus, some believe that a general lack of awareness is one of the key causal factors for rape.
3.Attitude towards women and relationship
Even though female goddesses are treated with the utmost respect in India, gender issues prevail in the form of socially constructed, predefined gender roles firmly anchored in India’s socio-cultural fabric that has deep cultural and historical roots (Batra & Reio, Citation2016). This sub-theme revealed the understanding of the ways most men have formed an attitude towards women and relationships due to which women are being attacked.
4.Sexual restrictions
This is the opinion about most men being sexually unsatisfied thereby failing to meet their basic physical needs thus resulting in crime. Social and cultural restrictions imposed upon normal human tendencies tend to play a major role here. Under this there are also two sub points talked about is legal ambiguity about sex out of marriage, and social constraints for free sexual expressions.
All these socio-cultural factors are important to understand impacts of socioeconomic factors on rape incidents in India.
Method
To assess the effects of socioeconomic factors on instances of rape in India, this paper utilizes a kind of quantitative methodology. The quantitative analysis utilizes regression modeling to investigate the correlation between socioeconomic indicators (such as poverty rate, literacy rate, and gender disparity index) and rape rates in various states. In this paper it’s a deep analysis of how different socioeconomic factors has their impact on various rape cases all over India. All sources used here are secondary sources of information like newspapers, journals, and websites are used for the research.
Suggestions
Drawing from the conclusions of this research, numerous policy suggestions can be put forward to tackle the underlying factors contributing to instances of rape in India. To begin with, focused interventions aimed at mitigating poverty and enhancing economic opportunities for marginalized communities can contribute to a decrease in the occurrence of sexual violence and hence will be a better thing to go forward with. Secondly, endeavors to enhance the availability of quality education, especially for girls and women, are vital in challenging deep-rooted patriarchal norms and fostering gender equality will also help. Moreover, implementing comprehensive sexuality education programs and conducting awareness campaigns can play a pivotal role in promoting a culture of consent and preventing rape incidents. Focusing on socioeconomic factors as mentioned more on education and gender inequality will help in decreasing various kind of rapes in India.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this research paper underscores the significant influence of socioeconomic factors on the occurrence of rape incidents in India. More clearly it talks about the impact of socioeconomic factors on various rape incidents in India. By examining the complex interplay of poverty, education, gender inequality, and urbanization, the study provides valuable insights for policymakers, practitioners, and activists working to address sexual violence in Indian society. As mentioned, there are lot of social and economic factors that have their impact on rape incidents, by understanding these factors and to merely focus on these factors will really work for understanding the rape cases more critically and will help to delve deep into the matter of rape incidents in Indian society. Moving forward, concerted efforts are needed to tackle the structural inequalities in Indian society and cultural norms perpetuating rape cultures, ultimately fostering safer and more equitable society for all individuals. As talked about issues related to marital rape, non-marital rape or any other type of rape irrespective of which type of rape socioeconomic factors has their impact on the rape incidents. To understand the laws of rape in India also play a crucial role in the research. None the less to know about the matter of consent under section of IPC is important for understanding the impacts. Every individual need to understand the crux of matter behind rape cases keeping in mind the socio-economic factors that plays an important role in rape incidents. As rape is one of the most sensitive areas to be talked about one must understand the reasons and factors behind it. It’s crucial to understand the socioeconomic factors and their impact on rape incidents in India to decrease the rape cases in India.
Anuradha Waghmode
ILS Law College, Pune