The Supreme Court told the Centre and Delhi Police on October 5 to ensure that every woman in the capital feels safe, directing dedicated police teams in each district, better patrols and an audit of lighting and CCTV.
The order’s emphasis is on timing. The bench said what matters is to prevent crime, and not only to act after it has been committed.
The measures are practical rather than legal: mapping vulnerable locations such as parks and transport hubs, stronger evening and early-morning patrols, and repairs to lighting and surveillance where they fall short.
The bench said that inadequate lighting, poor surveillance and lax patrolling create the conditions in which crimes occur, and that authorities must act on the ground and not rely on paperwork.
The matter stays under the court’s monitoring, and authorities will have to file progress reports.
Police are to map vulnerable locations, including parks, transport hubs and isolated areas.
Evening and early-morning patrols are to be strengthened.
Authorities must audit lighting and CCTV at public parks, metro stations, bus stops and other vulnerable places, and repair or strengthen them where needed.
The court also pointed to the use of the National Database on Sexual Offenders and emergency response systems.
LatestLY reported that the court emphasised 24-hour monitoring cells to prevent sexual offences.
The bench said that inadequate lighting, poor surveillance and lax patrolling create conditions in which crimes against women can occur.
It said authorities must act on the ground and not rely on paperwork.
The matter remains under the court’s monitoring, and authorities will have to file progress reports showing the action taken.
A suo motu case is one that the court takes up on its own, without a petition from a party.
The Centre and Delhi Police are the respondents in the case, because Delhi Police reports to the Union Home Ministry.
Connaught Place, New Delhi at night (file image), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0