Abstract: The recent incident of sexual violence in Kolkata and the submission of the Hema Committee Report in Kerala have evoked multi-layered and complex responses across different domains in India. Despite legal reforms and public outrage in response to such incidents in the past, procedural delays, societal biases, and systemic issues undermine the pursuit of justice. This panel discussion will examine the larger socio-economic and political contexts of sexual violence, focusing on how power structures shape responses to these crimes and function to reproduce them. By scrutinizing the intersections of identity, law, and media discourses, the panel will highlight how societal attitudes and institutional biases continue to hinder progress in the fight against sexual violence.
About the speakers: The panelists are PhD students at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bengaluru.