People chant slogans as they participate in a protest condemning and marking one month since the rape and murder of a trainee medic at a government-run hospital in Kolkata, India, September 8, 2024. REUTERS/Sahiba Chawdhary/ File Photo
NEW DELHI/AJMER/KOLKATA (Reuters) - The Indian government has slashed its goal to create thousands of new tribunals to try sex crimes speedily after states like West Bengal, where the recent brutal rape-homicide of a doctor shook the nation, fell far short of targets, according to three federal government officials and an internal document seen by Reuters.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government moved to establish fast-track special courts (FTSC) in 2019 to try exclusively sex crimes, after the Supreme Court that year criticised state governments for being slow to deliver justice to victims. The court singled out Bengal and Uttar Pradesh for taking too long to reach judgment on cases involving child victims.
