NCW chief Rekha Sharma alleged family equally responsible in incidents against women in live-in relationships.
BySnehashish Roy
National Commission for Woman (NCW) chairperson Rekha Sharma said that women are ‘not safe’ in live-in relationships and that ‘families are also responsible for such incidents’. Her statement came in the wake of the horrific incident in Delhi’s Kashmere Gate where a man named Sahil Gehlot allegedly strangled his partner inside a car and later put her body in a refrigerator.
“We feel that girls are not safe in live-in relationship. Not only the girls but the families are also responsible for such incidents. Such incidents can come down if girls are given the right to choose their partner,” Sharma was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. She further urged that the family should ‘accept the live-in relationship’
She further demanded strengthening of law and order in the wake of ‘rise in the incidents of crimes against live-in partners’. Similarly, she urged parents to allow their children ‘to confide about their problems, sorrows and joys’.
In a series of tweets, Sharma purportedly suggested parents to treat their children with respect and ‘refrain from treating them as possessions’ and create a ‘supportive environment in which they feel comfortable seeking help whenever they need it’.
“We also need to ensure that we treat our children with respect and refrain from treating them as possessions. Such behavior may cause the children to hesitate to share their thoughts and feelings. It is important to treat our children, especially when they come of age, as our friends, allowing them to confide in us about their problems, sorrows, and joys,” she said.
Sahil Gehlot allegedly strangled his partner to death and kept her body in a refrigerator over what the preliminary reports suggest marriage pressure. Meanwhile, the NCW has written to the Delhi Police on the murder case.
