By Ronald Stone Syiem
NONGSTOIN: The separation of the Executive and the Judiciary in West Khasi Hills has begun to show positive results with a marked acceleration visible in conviction in cases related to crimes and women and children with as many as 65 convictions till date since the process began. Since the separation of the Judiciary from the Executive, most of the cases have been progressing smoothly with convictions in several cases, mostly of rape of minor girls. Before the separation of the Judiciary and the Executive, there was a backlog of pending cases as the Judicial Magistrates were too busy catering to additional responsibilities in their offices leading to slow rates of convictions which forced the victims and their families to go for “compromise” with the culprit – a situation in which the victim always lost and the perpetrator profited.
But after the separation of the Judiciary from the Executive, verdict in majority of the cases have been pronounced and the files cleared out. As per an analysis by The Shillong Times, from May 2015 till date in March, the total number of conviction under various section including excise, theft, threat and crimes against women are 65 with 38 convictions in Nongstoin and 27 in Mairang. Official sources also said that with the separation of the Judiciary from the Executive, justice has been served sooner than usual which is especially beneficial for the rural womenfolk.
Residents of the district hope that with delivery of justice being speeded up, the day is not far when crimes against women and minor children would be reduced to a naught.