Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday called for strengthening the district monitoring committees set up under special fast-track courts to speed up cases involving atrocities against women and children in the country.

There exists a bitter chasm between Modi’s public pleas on women’s safety and practices. His government, for instance, looked away from a protracted sit-in by top women wrestlers protesting against alleged sexual harassment by former party MP and Wrestling Federation boss, Braj Bhushan Sharan Singh.

It did not give him a Lok Sabha ticket for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls from Uttar Pradesh, but rewarded his son with a seat instead.

Inaugurating the two-day national conference of district judicial officers here to mark 75 years of the Supreme Court’s establishment, Modi referred to various legislations enacted by successive governments in the country, including the setting up of fast-track courts in 2019.

He pointed out that there was a provision for a deposition centre for important witnesses under the fast-track special courts in cases related to atrocities against women and children. He added that the district monitoring committees under fast-track special courts — comprising the district judge, district magistrate and superintendent of police — had a crucial role in coordinating between various aspects of the criminal justice system.

“These committees need to be made more active as the quicker the decisions in cases related to atrocities against women, the greater will be the assurance of safety for half the population,” Modi said.

The Prime Minister also unveiled a stamp and coin commemorating the occasion. The conference, organised by the Supreme Court, will host five working sessions to deliberate and discuss the issues related to the district judiciary such as infrastructure and human resources, inclusive courtrooms for all, judicial security and judicial wellness, case management and judicial training.