Rapists should be lynched: Jaya Bachchan in RS

Demands like the public lynching of rapists and their chemical castration resonated in Rajya Sabha as members of Parliament from both Houses expressed outrage over the Hyderabad rape and murder case, on Monday.

Samajwadi Party's Jaya Bachchan wanted security personnel in-charge of the area in Hyderabad where the crime took place to be held accountable and questions are asked. She said that the rapists should be "brought out in public and lynched."

DMK's P Wilson said courts should be empowered to “surgically and chemically castrate convicted rapists” before they are released from jails so as to check repeat offenders.

The cost of such a procedure should be recovered from the accused by selling his assets, he said, adding the list of sexual offenders should also be made public.

Kanakamedala Ravindra Kumar (TDP) wanted capital punishment to be given to the rapists in public.

After members spoke, Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu suggested a rethink on the practice of allowing convicts in heinous crimes to go in for mercy appeals.

He also suggested that photographs of the guilty of the crime against women should be published so that there is some social stigma and fear in them.

"What is required is not a new bill. What is required is a political will, administrative skill and then change of mindset and then go for the kill of the social evil," Naidu said.

Responding to members’ concern in Lok Sabha, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh assured the government was ready to bring changes in the laws to make its provision tougher to put a check on such cases.

Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy also said the Centre has already written to state governments and state police chiefs seeking suggestions to bring changes in the existing laws to ensure speedy trial of the cases like the Hyderabad incident.

Members in the Lower House expressed outrage over several other recent incidents of rape in different parts of the country and demanded that the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) must be amended to provide for capital punishment to the rape convicts.

Some of the members including Trinamool Congress' Saugata Roy, BSP's Danish Ali and BJD's Pinaki Mishra pointed out that the award of the death penalty to the convicts of the Nirbhaya rape case was still not executed, demanding that all they must “immediately” be hanged till death.