The Daily Times reported that several cases have emerged where men have allegedly dug up female corpses from graveyards and sexually assaulted them, leading to families installing metal bars and locks on their daughters’ graves to prevent post-mortem rape. Pakistan is experiencing a sharp increase in rape cases, with statistics indicating a rape occurs every two hours in the country. Along with this trend, cases of necrophilia are also increasing in Pakistan. Pakistan has a disturbing history of cases where women’s corpses have been violated, with the most horrifying incident occurring in 2011, when a graveyard keeper named Muhammad Rizwan was caught violating 48 female corpses. Similar cases have been reported in various parts of Pakistan, including Chak Kamala village in Gujrat, Okara city in Punjab, and Karachi’s Landhi Town, where women’s bodies were allegedly raped and sexually assaulted after burial. In 2013, a 15-year-old girl’s body was also discovered outside her grave in Gujranwala, and it was reported that she had been sexually assaulted.
The word “necrophilia” originates from the Greek words “nekros” and “philia”, which respectively mean “corpse” and “love”. It was first coined by Joseph Guislain, a Belgian psychiatrist who lived in the 19th century. It is common for necrophilia to coexist with other paraphilias such as sadism, cannibalism, vampirism, necrophagia, necropedophilia, and necrozoophilia. Necrophilia is a condition where a person finds sexual gratification in or is attracted to dead bodies. It refers to a desire to engage in sexual activity with a corpse or to be sexually stimulated by one. Paraphilia is an umbrella term used to describe any sexual behaviour or interest that is considered abnormal or unusual. Individuals with necrophilia may be aroused by the sight, touch, or scent of a corpse and may fantasise about or engage in sexual activity with it. Most countries consider necrophilia a criminal offence, and it is considered morally repugnant and unethical. It is important to note that engaging in any sexual activity with a corpse is illegal and can cause emotional distress to the loved ones of the deceased. Interestingly, most reported cases of necrophilia involve men rather than women.
In many instances, it has been observed that necrophiliacs often work as morticians or grave diggers because they have easy access to corpses in the morgue, which they use to satisfy their sexual desires. Many cases of necrophilia have been reported in the past, and those found guilty of such acts were either sent to a mental institution for treatment or imprisoned, depending on the severity of the case. Victor Antoine Ardisson and the case of Eva Peron are two famous instances of necrophilia from the 19th century. The “Rape of Nanking” in 1937 involved Japanese soldiers raping and murdering Chinese women, and then forcing Chinese men to engage in sexual acts with their corpses. In the 21st century, the Nithari case in Noida, India, was notorious for the serial murders and rapes of women and children by Surinder Koli. Even some necrophilia has a disorder where they eat human flesh. This person basically suffers from necrophagia.
It is often difficult to determine whether a case of necrophilia should be considered a psychological disorder or a criminal act. Necrophilia is classified as a type of paraphilia, which refers to a range of abnormal sexual behaviours or impulses characterised by intense sexual fantasies and urges that are persistent and often involve unusual objects, activities, or situations. Those with paraphilic tendencies may be labelled “kinky’ or “perverted”. Although it is difficult to define paraphilia due to its complexity, the DSM-IV (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) has provided a commonly accepted definition. According to the DSM-IV, paraphilia is defined as recurrent, intense sexually arousing fantasies, sexual urges, or behaviours generally involving i) non-human objects, ii) the suffering or humiliation of oneself or one’s partner, or iii) children or other non-consenting persons that occur over a period of at least 6 months. There are eight types of paraphilia disorders that have been reported worldwide and Necrophilia is one of this.
Necrophilia cases vary from person to person. According to reports from Pakistan, it would not be wrong to call them criminals rather than psychopaths. All the incidents reported from Pakistan show that the culprits commit these crimes to satisfy their sexual lust and to prey on an easy target in the form of a dead body that will not raise any voice against the crime committed as the dead cannot speak. It’s tough, not impossible, to bifurcate between a criminal and psychopath from their necrophiliac behaviours. It’s not normal for a person to do sexual intercourse with a dead person or rotten bodies. But he who dig graveyard for fresh dead body clearly shows that they just need women’s fresh body to satisfy their sexual lust and that has seen in the Pakistan based on various reports.
Though in many countries necrophilia is considered as separate crime like in the US state of Georgia, which considered it a separate crime under GA Code § 16-6-7 (2020). Pakistan don’t have any specific penal provisions for Necrophilia. Section 297 and Section 377 of the Pakistan Penal Code are applicable to necrophilia cases, but the punishment for such crimes is minimal, which makes a mockery of both the law and the judicial system. Similarly, India also lacks specific provisions for necrophilia, despite reported cases such as the Nithari case. Under the Indian Penal Code, there is only one provision related to a dead body, which is Section 297 that pertains to the proper burial rights of a deceased individual.
It is true that the deceased cannot speak, but their family members are left with an emotional attachment to their loved one. It is truly appalling and disheartening that even after death, women and girls cannot be protected from criminals who view them as mere objects. Women were previously confined to the confines of their homes, and now the situation has worsened to the point that they are confined in their own graves, or perhaps, in the future, they may need to be protected by their guardians within the walls of their homes, even after they have passed away. There is a need of specific law to deal with this issues.
Dr Pyali Chatterjee is HOD, Faculty of Law, ICFAI University, Raipur, Chhattisgarh.