Tamil Nadu government has decided to send a proposal to the Centre to amend various sections of the Indian Penal Code to increase jail terms in cases of crimes against women and girls, Chief Minister Edapppadi K. Palaniswami said on Wednesday.
Minimum jail term for deaths due to dowry harassment will be increased by three years to 10 years under Section 304-B of IPC. Minimum jail term for disrobing women will be increased to five years from three years under Section 354-B of IPC and the maximum prison term would be increased to 10 years from the current seven years, the chief minister said.
Under Section 354-D, the prison term for second-time offenders for stalking women with criminal intention will be increased by two years to seven years.
IPC 372 and 373, which deal with selling and buying minor girls for the purpose of prostitution, will be amended to increase the minimum prison term to seven years and the maximum jail term to life sentence from the current 10 years.
Last week, DMK president M.K. Stalin had alleged a sharp hike in the number of crimes registered in the state.
Crimes against women saw a 40.79 per cent rise in Coimbatore and 18.54 per cent increase in Chennai, he had said.