The Indian judiciary plays an important role in interpreting and applying the law. In a country where gender disparity is so common whether be it in the education sector, health sector or employment sector to name a few, the judiciary plays a pivotal role in empowering women and filling this gender gap.

Although several provisions have been embodied in our Indian Constitution for protecting and preserving the rights of women and for safeguarding their interests, but many are still unaware or ignorant about their rights, which are provided to them by the law. Even if , they are made aware or well versed with the whole scenario , a very few have economic resources and courage to obtain legal redress.

No one can ignore the significant role being played by the judiciary in this direction helping her to get what is due to her as a matter of right. In many judicial pronouncements , the judiciary has shown its innate desire to help the deprived and underprivileged section of the society i.e. the women who face the brunt of sexual violence in silence while giving a whole new dimension to justice itself[1].

There should be no discrimination between men and women. Women should know their fundamental and social rights which they get once they are born[2]. There should be respect and dignity towards women and they should have equal rights in society and other judicial works.

Mahatma Gandhi, once quoted that:
There is no occasion for women to consider themselves subordinate or inferior to men.

Indian Constitutional law and ordinary law through judiciary has been working as a saviour of women from atrocities. The principle of gender equality is enshrined in the Indian Constitution in its Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles. The Constitution not only grants equality to women, but also empowers the state to adopt measures of positive discrimination in favour of women.

Gender Gap Index:

For India to maintain its position as a global growth leader, more concerted efforts at local and national levels, and by the private sector are needed to bring women to parity with men.

While increasing representation of women in the public spheres is important and can potentially be attained through some form of affirmative action, an attitudinal shift is essential for women to be considered as equal within their homes and in broader society.

World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index 2019-2020 measures the extent of gender-based gaps in economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment. The report particularly brings to light the alarmingly low level of women’s participation in the economy.

It says:
Among the 153 countries studied, India is the only country where the economic gender gap is larger than the political gender gap. Only one-quarter of women, compared with 82% of men, engage actively in the labour market (i.e. working or looking for work):
one of the lowest participation rates in the world (145th). Furthermore, female estimated earned income is a mere one-fifth of male income, which is also among the world’s lowest (144th).

India dropped four places, from 2018, to take the 112th rank in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index 2019-2020. In the health and survival parameter, India’s performance is dismal, ranking 150th out of 153 countries. The Global Gender Gap report states that it will take us almost 100 years to achieve gender parity worldwide.

Case laws:
Practically, there has been a very little change in the status of women compared to the various discussions and debates held on women empowerment, or the enactments and laws made in favour of women.

There have many cases of sexual harassment against women in India. Various landmark judgments have been delivered by the Supreme Court wherein the legal aspect of the nation has seen a great deal of milestone decisions.

The historic judgment of Vishaka vs. State of Rajasthan[3] was the outcome of a writ petition filed by certain social activities and NGOs to an incident of brutal gang rape of a government development worker in a village of Rajasthan. In this case, the Supreme Court observed that , in the absence of domestic law occupying the field, to formulate effective measures to check the evil of sexual harassment of working women at all work places the contents of International Conventions and norms (CEDAW) are significant for the purpose of interpretation of the guarantee of gender equality, right to work with human dignity in Articles 14[4], 15[5], 19 (1) (g)[6] and 21[7] of the Constitution and the safeguards against sexual harassment implicit therein. The recent Sexual Harassment Act[8] as published in the Gazette of India had derived its origins from this case.

The Vishaka case is, unique in many ways wherein the court not only acted as the active guardian of fundamental rights and also provided temporary respite to working women. The guideline extended the responsibility to eliminate discriminatory sexual conduct to a larger society , in this case , the workplace and obligated the employer to ensure a safe and healthy environment for women employees.

The main aim of the court, while evolving these guidelines , was to ensure a fair, secure and comfortable work environment to the extent possible , and also, to eliminate situations where the protector could abuse his position and turn predator[9]. Vishaka’s case was a quantum leap in expanding the principle of fairness in procedure after Maneka Gandhi case[10] wherein the court, for the first time, had observed that right to equality would also include the right not to be treated in an arbitrary manner. It was for the first time in Vishaka case that the principle of fair and just procedure was expanded further to include a gender justice procedure in furtherance of the constitutional goals of equality.‖

The critical advance made by the Vishaka judgement is the expansive interpretation given to Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India[11] , insofar as sexual harassment at the workplace has been held to be in violation of the fundamental freedom of all women , as citizens , to pursue the business, trade or profession of one‘s choice. It is within the framework of constitutional law that the judgment operates , holding that:

“Each such incident results in violation of the fundamental rights of Gender Equality and the Right to Life and Liberty. It is a clear violation of the rights under Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the constitution. One of the logical consequences of such an incident is also the violation of the victim‘s fundamental right under Article 19(1)(g) to practice any profession or to carry out any occupation , trade or business.

However , post-Vishaka case, and now with the passage of the 2013 Act, sexual harassment at the workplace is categorically prohibited across all workplaces, whether in the public or the private domain, whether rural or urban, whether in the organised or unorganized sector.

In another case of Radha Bai vs. Union Terriority of Pondicherry[12], the apex court awarded a lumpsum compensation of Rs. 3 lakhs for the loss of reputation and honour of Ms. Radha Bai and for the agony she had to suffer in the long battle against the Government of Pondicherry and the then Home Minister of Pondicherry within one month from the date of the order. Thus we can draw an inference that Supreme Court is taking these matters seriously.

In the case of Apparel Export Promotion Council v. AK. Chopra[13], it was for the first time when Supreme Court had applied the guidelines laid down in Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan. In this case, the Supreme Court upheld the dismissal of an officer from Apparel Export Promotion Council. He was found guilty of harassing at women at his workplace on the ground that it violated Article 21 of Indian Constitution.

The court decisions in the Vishaka case and AK Chopra case were followed by various High Courts in a number of cases on this sensitive issue for example , in Shehnaz case[14] wherein it was probably for the first time that any High Court applied the court‘s guidelines with regard to sexual harassment at workplace.

Conclusion:
Gender-based disparity in income is serious in India and exists across the organised and unorganised sectors. In agriculture, building construction, etc., women are paid far less than men. Their employers justify this wage gap citing differences in capability. And this discrimination continues in every aspect whether in the education or health sector, the girl child is always treated unequally. Indian society still hasn’t been awakened to the importance of empowering the women. The statistics still narrate a grim story of female foeticide, girl child discrimination and gender bias .

The need of the hour is to make a change in the mindset of the society. It is not easy to change the culture of disregard for women which are so deep- rooted in the Indian society. But it also does not mean that it is impossible to do so. Only revolutions bring changes in a day, but reforms take their time. The idea of women empowerment might sound hard. The Government of India is running various welfare schemes and policies, both at State and Central levels for the empowerment of woman.

Some of the major programs and measures include Swadhar (1995), Swayam Siddha (2001), National Mission for Empowerment of Women (2010) etc. All such policies and programs focus on social, economic and educational empowerment of women across various age groups. Women should have access to resources, rights, and entitlements. They should be given decision-making powers and due position in governance.

Gender inequality has been a social issue in India for centuries. Although, there has been no dearth of social, economic, political, legal and Constitutional efforts made for the empowerment of women both prior to and post- Independence; however, women in India continue to face atrocities such as rape, dowry killings, acid attacks, human trafficking, etc. According to a global poll conducted by Reuters, India is the “fourth most dangerous country in the world for women.

In the words of Late Kofi Annan who served as the seventh Secretary- General of the United Nations, There is no tool for development more effective than the empowerment of women.

Hence all we need is a concentrated effort focused in the right direction that would recreate the society better.

Serial killing is different from mass murder. Serial killing is when a person kills more than two persons in a different period of time where mass murder means killing a bunch of people in the same place and time. They call these murders as serial killing because there is a series of murders involved. Serial killers could be anyone like our father, mother, friend, husband or other closed people.

Though we may have noticed some difference in their behavior in some cases we may not have any clue that they taking the lives of many people. The gaps between one murder and the other may be a day, a month or even a year. According to the view of people, they portray a serial killer as an evil monster with unusual appearance, but actually, they are a normal human being with normal appearance. But we people fail to learn why they are involved in these activities.

To understand serial killers studying psychology is more important than studying criminology. Not all the serial killers but the majority of the serial killers has psychological reasons to do such a big crime. Our Indian law also doesn’t treat them any differently. When we try to find what was the reason behind those murders, we may get a response which is either silly or sexual based reasons.

Every human in this world has sexual and silly problems but what triggers them to kill a person? Are they really criminals or one among the people who have a mental illness? Why do they have such thoughts? What makes them kill the other person? Does every serial killer have the same mentality? How does our Indian law treat them? How should they be treated? These are a few common questions that pop in our mind which are unanswered. Our paper will throw lights on all these questions.

Who Is A Serial Killer?

Every serial killer drive to kill multiple victims may be unique, dependent on his/her history and experiences. There is no general definition for the serial killers. Serial killing is the rarest form of homicide. It occurs when an individual has killed more than two or three people who were previously unknown to him or her. There is always cooling off period between each murder. The serial killer can be defined in a simple term as a person who kills more than three people without any personal reasons. The above-mentioned definition has been accepted by both police and academic experts and provides a useful frame for reference.

This definition narrows the analysis of such crimes as it fails to incorporate with many similar characteristics of a serial killer. Serial killing is considered in relation to broad historical changes that have occurred over the past 400-500 years. The historical setting and broader social intimately tied with serial killing. When we go through human history there have probably always been an individual who engaged in serial predation. But in previous eras, it was not possible for an individual to be a serial killer.

Serial killing is a distinctly modern phenomenon. The recent social and cultural conditions to which criminologists can provide fresh insight by accentuating the broad institutional frameworks, motivations, and opportunity structures within which serial killing occurs. When it comes to public knowledge, the serial killer is a product of Hollywood productions. To heighten the interest of the audience’s story lines are created, rather than to accurately portray serial murder.

The pubic is captivated by the criminal and their crimes by focusing on the atrocities inflicted on the victims by deranged offenders. This lends more confusion to the true dynamics of a serial killer. This information also misleads law enforcement professionals from a different source. Professionals who are all involved in serial murder cases such as investigators, prosecutors, and pathologists may have limited exposure to serial murder.

Those professional experience may be based upon a single murder series and the factors, in that case, are extrapolated to other serial killers. Certain stereotypes and misconceptions take root regarding the nature of serial killer and their characteristics. Most of the serial killers are not reclusive, social misfits who live alone. We should remember that they are normal human with families and homes, are gainfully employed, and appear to be normal members of the community. They blend in so effortlessly and they are oftentimes overlooked by the law enforcement and the public.

Classification Of Serial Killers:

The serial killers can be classified according to their character and their behavior. Various criminologist, law enforcement officials, mental health professionals and social scientists have attempted to discover the true motive behind the serial killers.

They try to classify serial killers based on the typologies, which will gain information’s to further assist law enforcement officers in profiling and investigating cases related to serial killers. After making various researches the researchers have come up with a typology to determine the making of a serial killer.

According to the typology the serial killers are classified as:

What Makes A Serial Killer?

1. The organized killer:These types of offenders lead methodical lives that are also replicated in the way they commit crimes. They are triggered to kill someone by their intimate relationship, finances or employment problems. These offenders are normal person, who is skilled in employment and they have average to a high level of intelligence and they are also being socially proficient. They always restrain victims and reflect a level of control in the situation. Usually organized offenders communicate or use a verbal approach with their potential victims before the violence. The victims are chosen by the offenders based on certain characteristics such as age, physical appearance, gender, hairstyle or even based on their hair color.
   
2. Disorganized killers:These offenders are completely different from organized offenders. Disorganized offender’s crime scene and their characteristics suggest chaos and little premeditation before the offence. It may include evidence such as semen, blood, fingerprints or murder weapon. The offenders are incompetent to carry out or maintain social relationship or interaction and the disarrayed crime scene reflects this. This lack of intimate relationship may increase the chances of potential sexual or sadistic acts as a part of the murder.
   
3. Mixed killers:These killers are the one who cannot be easily identified as organized or disorganized. Those who are falling under this category are said to have both organized and disorganized characteristics. Mixed killing may involve more than one offender. They always have some sort of planning and there are unforeseen events. The unforeseen events may include a victim resisting or offender escalating into a different pattern of violence. The offender leaves the victim’s body poorly covered. These offenders may be young and/or involved in drugs or alcohol.

Unlike normal people, serial killers are relatively charming. They appear to be one among us but they aren’t. Not only they have a motive to kill someone but they are manipulative and aggressive too. But what are the reasons behind it? How does a man transform into a serial killer? Now let’s see the causes of serial killers.

1. A study has found that every serial killer has common emotional development issues and an above average intelligence.
    
2. Pregnancy: Doctors say that a child in a womb could hear everything that the mother hears and experience few emotions that the other’s experience. If a woman is so stressed, depressed or any other emotion then the child also experiences the same. It may reflect in not only the child’s growth in the womb but also it affects its mental growth which may lead to many mental disorders.
    
3. Infancy: It is the period of every human being to be given more attention and love. The first twelve months in our life is the period in which our basic emotions develop. The child should experience more affection and physical touch or else the child may experience many disorders in future. When we compare these theories to our real life, we could observe that most of the serial killers are adopted or abandoned children.
    
4. Childhood: Most of the serial killers have experienced bullying and loneliness in their childhood. It is said that commonly they had dyslexia which makes them less concentrative in their studies. They have also experienced abnormal weight, height, etc. due to which they bullied and ignored by their peers. There are also serial killers who had experienced sexual abuse, harassment which leads them to any mental disorders.
    
5. Parenting: The parents of the serial killers also ignored, bullied, shouted, etc. Their parents tend to be an alcoholic who drinks and forces their children to involve in the same activity. Some parents are workaholic who doesn’t check on their child properly and fails to give attention even if they try to contact. In the worst situation, few parents have harassed their children physically, mentally and sexually too.
    
6. Chromosomes: Recent studies had proved that one’s chromosome abnormality can trigger them to become a serial killer. For example, if any person is born with one extra X chromosome or Y chromosome it may lead to abnormality.
    
7. Fantasy: We people have our own fantasies but we know our reality but serial killers tend to live in their own fantasy every second. Their emotions are designed by their fancies. They are controlled by their imagination. They just follow their imagination and do whatever the fantasy orders them to do.
    
8. Sadist: Few people are addicted to hearing the pain, sorrow, screaming, etc. Their emotions are mixed up. They would love to see blood. There are serial killers who have the habit of having sexual intercourse with a dead body of the person whom they killed. This is the extreme level of sadism.
    
9. Mission: These serial killers are not psychotic. They would have missions which are mostly immoral and illegal. Their guilt and own pressure to complete the desired task leads them to do aggressive things.
    
10. Lust: Sexual gratification is the main aim of these killers. Serial killers who kill for lust would like to have total control and dominance over their victims. So, to ensure that they have control over their victim they kill them.

Some serial killers are psychotic and some are not. Mostly their attitudes and motive depend on their parenting and childhood.

Laws In India
The concept of serial killers doesn’t have its mark in the Indian Code. The only sections to deal with it are Section 299 and Section 300.

Section 299 of The Indian Penal Code says:
Whoever causes death by doing an act with the intention of causing death, or with the intention of causing such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, or with the knowledge that he is likely by such act to cause death, commits the offence of culpable homicide.

And Section 300 of The Indian Penal Code explains that:
“Except in the cases hereinafter excepted, culpable homicide is murder, if the act by which the death is caused is done with the intention of causing death, or

(Secondly) -If it is done with the intention of causing such bodily injury as the offender knows to be likely to cause the death of the person to whom the harm is caused, or

(Thirdly) -If it is done with the intention of causing bodily injury to any person and the bodily injury intended to be in­flicted is sufficient in the ordinary course of nature to cause death, or

(Fourthly) -If the person committing the act knows that it is so imminently dangerous that it must, in all probability, cause death or such bodily injury as is likely to cause death, and commits such act without any excuse for incurring the risk of causing death or such injury as aforesaid.”

Culpable homicide and murder have only a thin line of difference. Generally, if a person kills someone, they will the have motive and intention to kill them. Motive leads to intention. A motive is a malicious mind which is the ultimate object. Intention refers to the immediate act caused. In the case of these serial killers, they will have the intention to kill those persons but there is no motive. It is said that mens rea is partially absent in their cases. Some have argued with this partial mens rea and Section 84 of The Indian Penal Code.

According to Section 84 of The Indian Penal Code:
“ Nothing is an offence which is done by a person who, at the time of doing it, by reason of unsoundness of mind, is incapable of knowing the nature of the act, or that he is doing what is either wrong or contrary to law.”

But the same rule was absent in the Criminal Procedure Code and Mental Health Act of 1987. The Bombay High Court in the case of State of Maharashtra vs Sindhi Alias Raman, S/O Dalwai quoted that the medical insanity that the criminals have might not be the same insanity said in Section 84 of The Indian Penal Code. Though the insanity is same as quoted, these criminals are able to identify the consequences of the committed act. Though they do not have a guilty mind they knew that they were committing a wrong or illegal act. Automatically Section 84 of the Code doesn’t apply here.

There were many cases in India regarding serial killers. In the famous Auto Shankar case, Shankar and his associates were found guilty of six murders committed over a period of two years between 1988 and 1989. The victims’ remains were either charred or found within 12 homes.

In Joshi- Abhyankar case, four commercial art students have committed ten murders within January 1976 and March 1977. At times they have also robbed and drank alcohol. These are only two examples. In all the serial killer cases the killers are hanged or given life imprisonment. But in all these cases there was no question regarding psychopathy was raised.

Conclusion:
To summarize the discussion above mentioned many factors plays an important role in the development of these serial killers. There has not been one sole factor or no one major factor for the development of characteristics of the serial killer, it is a combination of several factors and incapability to cope up with a healthy life. Even though the factors may be overlapping or independent but they do not guarantee each other existences and do not guarantee that the person with these characters will become a serial killer. One of the notable disturbing aspects of the serial killer is that virtually everyone is at risk.

Even a person who is cautious is not safe from the serial killer. There are various motivation theories are relevant to the exploration of a serial killer, but readers are not to place excessive explanatory on one theory. A continuous investigation would benefit from an interdisciplinary approach which allows for consideration of genetic, psychological and social influence upon the serial killer.