Stringent punishment needed for crimes against women: Top quotes from PM Modi on Independence Day

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence Day speech on Thursday, said that there should be swift investigation into crimes against women, adding that those responsible for such acts should face strict punishment without delay.

He also said that 140 crore Indians were worried about the safety of the Hindu community in Bangladesh amid reports of incidents of violence against religious minorities in the neighbouring country.

Here are some of the top quotes from the prime minister’s speech.

• “We will have to think seriously as a society about the atrocities that are happening against women,” the prime minister said in his address from the Red Fort in Delhi. “There is outrage against this in the country. I can feel this outrage.” Modi said: “The country, the society and state governments must address this matter with utmost urgency.” There is a need to widely discuss punishment for atrocities against women so that there remains a fear of the consequences, he added. The prime minister’s remarks come amid widespread protests against the rape and murder of a junior doctor at a medical college in Kolkata earlier this month. The 31-year-old junior doctor and postgraduate student was found dead in the seminar hall of the hospital on August 9.
• Modi called for discussions on the implementation of...

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