NCW seeks Centre’s nod for opening offices in UTs

Srinagar, May 19 : The National Commission for Women has proposed to open offices in the country’s Union territories and is awaiting approval from the Ministry of Home Affairs in this regard, Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar said on Tuesday.

“We recently sent a proposal to the ministry to open commission offices in the UTs. We are waiting for the necessary approval and permission in this regard,” Rahatkar, who is here to hold public hearing of complaints, told reporters.

She was responding to a question about whether a “state women’s commission” will be established in Jammu and Kashmir for addressing complaints from the Union territory.

“Jammu and Kashmir is a UT, and in the present setup, there will not be a state commission for women. So, the National Commission for Women (NCW) will be looking after the matters here. You are right in saying that a women’s commission here would be a great help, but all UTs come under the NCW,” she said.

The NCW chief said the commission will be holding public hearings in future as well to address the complaints of the women from Jammu and Kashmir.

“I want to assure the sisters of Jammu and Kashmir that NCW will do its best in the UT. We will keep coming here to listen to the grievances. As you know, the NCW has been in Srinagar for the past four days as we have 14 cases. We heard the complaints at the public hearing. We had some walk-in complaints which will also be taken up,” Rahatkar added.

Asked about the Morbi sexual exploitation incident, she said the NCW has taken suo moto cognisance and views the incident very seriously. The case pertains to alleged sexual exploitation and rape of a woman and her minor daughter by their landlord in Gujarat’s Morbi district.