CHENNAI: Incidents of rape have doubled in the past decade mainly because of erosion of family values, said

judge Justice N Kirubakaran, speaking at a book release function here on Sunday.

Ruing that a situation had arisen wherein events and functions had to be organised to spread awareness about rape and violence against women and children, Justice Kirubakaran said domestic unrest was the root cause of many social evils.

The

judge

said the joint family system offered a mix of all human feelings and experiences and prepared youngsters for challenges in open society. A family busy with machines and social media platforms deprived children of fundamental values, he said.

Touching upon issues ranging from domestic violence to sexual harassment, as discussed in the book authored by lawyer A P Suryaprakasam, Justice Kirubakaran pointed out that involvement of women in crimes against women, particularly issues involving dowry, was rampant.

“I’m pained when women battling domestic issues tell me that the parents of their husband were the problem. Violence against women and children have gone up mainly because we lack love, affection and supervision of elders in families,” he said.

Instances of domestic and sexual harassment reflected personality disorders and psychological disorders, he said, adding that though India had the dubious distinction of having the maximum number of persons with psychological disorders, the nation did not have enough counsellors and psychiatrists.

“Only by making offenders suffer the pain through due process of law, can we deter such people from targeting children and women,” said Justice Kirubakaran.

Criticising the state liquor policy, he said many families had been ruined by free availability of alcohol.

Earlier, Justice (retd) K N Basha said he would get outraged at news of sexual harassment of children by people trusted by them, like teachers and relatives.

Senior Congress leader and seasoned lawmaker Peter Alphonse said the functioning of the

democracy

was revolving around judiciary. “Judicial activism is an accepted reality now, and its role in moderating democratic institutions can’t be undermined,” he said.