Medico legal aspects of crime against women

Due to rise in crowds, naturally there is fall in cultural values and escalation in crimes. Crime against women is on the rise especially sexual crimes. Though crime is prevalent in every country and society, most of them either goes undetected or unreported. As per National Crime records bureau, New Delhi, a crime takes places every 17 seconds, among them one dowry death every 77 mins, one crime against women every 3 mins and finally one rape or sexual assault every 27 mins. With above crime scenario, forensic medicine plays a important role in helping to prevent, early detection, providing expert medico legal and scientific reports at earliest, which will result in quick trial and instant administration of justice to victims. Due to lack of legal or medico legal, scientific awareness and knowledge among victims, investigating agencies, medical and para medical staff, the end result is either ‘justice hurried is justice buried’ or ‘justice delayed is justice denied’ to the victims. There is need to give importance to forensic nursing, impart medico legal knowledge to para medical and health workers in rural and semi urban levels as to how to handle cases of crimes committed against women and report them. One accused aquitted means breeding of hundred criminals. Prevention and detection is better than conviction.