SC Stresses Women’s Safety in Delhi, Seeks Effective Measures From Centre, Police
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday stressed that every woman in Delhi must feel safe while using public spaces and public transport, directing the Centre and Delhi Police to take effective measures to address safety concerns in the national capital.
“We must ensure every woman in NCT Delhi feels safe, whether walking at 10 PM or travelling by metro or road,” a bench led by Justice JB Pardiwala observed while hearing a suo motu case on recent rape and sexual assault incidents in Delhi-NCR.
The court had taken suo motu cognisance of several cases, including the alleged gang rape of a 17-year-old girl at Aastha Kunj Park near Kalkaji, the alleged gang rape of a minor in Swaroop Nagar and the alleged sexual assault of a 16-year-old girl on a bus travelling from Greater Noida to Delhi.
The bench said public spaces such as parks, roads and buses cannot become “zones of high risk” and questioned whether lessons had been learnt from the 2012 Nirbhaya case. It also linked women’s safety to the fundamental right to live with dignity and without violence under Article 21 of the Constitution.
Safety Audit Flags Gaps
The Aastha Kunj incident has prompted renewed scrutiny of security arrangements in Delhi’s parks. A DDA safety audit found that only 16 of 736 DDA-managed parks had CCTV cameras. While 190 parks were classified as high-risk, 520 required better lighting and 323 needed additional CCTV cameras.
The audit also flagged gaps in boundary security, gates, toilets and abandoned structures. More than 30 locations in Aastha Kunj have been identified for CCTV installation.
The Supreme Court has criticised the alleged “systemic failure” of authorities to ensure basic public safety and called for a comprehensive audit of public spaces.
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta has said women’s safety should not be ensured through restrictions on their movement, and called for better lighting, CCTV surveillance and increased security at vulnerable locations.
