Dr. Sesha KethineniDr. Sesha Kethineni, a professor in the Department of Justice Studies in Prairie View A&M University’s College of Juvenile Justice , attended the 28th session of the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice (CCPCJ), the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime May 20-24, 2019.  Serving as an American Society of Criminology UN representative, she received part of her trip’s funding from the American Society of Criminology and additional support from PVAMU’s Faculty Innovation and Enhancement Program (FIE).

At a side event session, she presented New Approaches to Addressing Trafficking and Sexual Violence against Women and Children. Her topic focused on Rape Crisis in India: Legislative Reforms and Their Impact on Women and Children. She discussed why sexual violence against women and children is a concern in India by highlighting the Indian National Crime Records Bureau statistics which recorded 38,947 rape cases in 2016, with many of the victims being under the age of 18.

“To address the crisis, India has introduced measures to expedite the prosecution of cases by requiring states to establish Fast-Tract Special Courts (FTSC),” said Kethineni. “The Ministry of Law and Justice proposed the creation of over 1000 fast-track courts in the country to reduce pendency of cases and redesign the court atmosphere to make it victim friendly. Despite these legislative reforms, many victims experience humiliation when they report the incident to the police and medical professionals.”

Kethineni’s presentation provided an assessment of the impact of FTSC on victims and in delivering justice.