As the whole country breathed a sigh of relief along with Nirbhaya’s parents when the four convicts of the gang-rape and murder case were hanged to death on Friday morning 5.30 am, let us take a moment to remember Chaya Sharma, the IPS officer who spearheaded the investigation and managed to put the culprits behind bars.
After clearing the UPSE exam on her second attempt at 1998, during 2012, when the Nirbhaya incident happened, she was serving as the Deputy Commissioner of Police of Delhi South. Talking about the atmosphere around her while investigating the case, Chaya Sharma says that the whole team was concerned to get swift justice to the victim and her parents more than anything. She also said that as a woman, cracking the case became her topmost priority and also admitted about the pressure she worked in to catch the culprits before they fled the capital. The time was the most important factor of the case, she says.
When the case came to her, there was no information on the names and whereabouts of the culprits and because of which the initial hours were very crucial for her team. Since she cracked one of the most talked-about cases in the history of the National Capital, naturally she sought a lot of media attention during the investigation and the trial. However, she never let the media to either motivate or inspire her. The inspiration was always to get the victim and her family the justice they deserved.
Capital Punishment Should Be Exemplary
Commenting about the necessity of capital punishment, she feels that the death penalty should only be given for the rarest of the rare cases. Those cases that are heinous like the Nirbhaya case or the one which questions humanity might deserve the death penalty. However, she reserved that the final decision lies with the Honorable Supreme Court.
While we celebrate the lawyer and the court who have worked together delivered justice to Nirbhaya, we need to acknowledge the contribution of Chaya Sharma IPS without who the convicts would never have found themselves in prison. Chaya Sharma is currently serving as the Director Inspector General of the National Human Rights Commission.
