Bhanwari Devi - a national icon and great inspiration

Two years ago on 16th December, a horrific incident of rape and murder happened in India's capital New Delhi. The brutality of the crime shook the entire nation, people were angry and frustrated about the regular occurrence of such crimes and the delay in delivering justice. This anger and nationwide protests forced the administration to deliver the judgment in a timely fashion in this particular case, but still, many victims are still waiting for justice for the crime that changed their lives. After going through the trauma of sexual abuse these victims have to relive that horror every time they go to court and come back without any solace. Our society and this system have to step up to end this trauma of these people. 

This post is not about that incident but about a brave woman Bhanwari Devi who not only survived one such assault but also fought against the culprits, against the system that failed to deliver justice to her. She is still bravely fighting her battle and waiting for justice to be delivered. Nandita Das's movie Bawander is based on the story of her life, it is worth a watch if anyone wants to know her story. She faced many hurdles during her fight for justice, not only the criminals who committed this act were from the upper caste but they were also politically very powerful which helped them to manipulate the police as well as the judiciary. But this brave lady didn't lose her courage and hope, she didn't even leave the village no matter how much they taunted her and tortured her family with social boycotts. Her argument was, if she didn't do any wrong why should she be the one to suffer. It was not she who did anything shameful so why she should leave the village, why she should feel guilty? All who know how the caste system in villages works and the various roles it plays in politics can understand how much courage and conviction are required to fight against these things. In many villages, women are not even allowed to step outside the home or village unless it is for some work or medical treatment, so one can imagine how much resistance Bhanwari Devi must have faced to even register a case against the culprits who raped her. People like her don't get much national attention or recognition as their stories carry very limited use for media and politicians. No political party is interested in taking up such issues as caste dynamics is an integral part of the politics for all parties. They don't look at criminals just as criminals but their religion or caste also becomes very important as it can mess up their political equations depending on which religion or caste the victim belongs and which religion or caste the perpetrator belongs. So, each political party bases its reactions based on its political calculations related to caste and religion. This is disgusting but it happens all the time and so far no political party tried to break away from this pattern. Unfortunately, the victims of such heinous crimes have to face the brunt of all this mess. First, they suffer at the hands of criminals who commit the crime, and then at the hands of the system which fails to deliver justice to them.

I don't know how long Bhanwari Devi and people like her have to wait to get justice from this system. I am glad to see that she still has faith in this system and waiting patiently for it to deliver what it promises to every Indian (speedy and fair justice). She is a great example of courage and determination. She showed that if you are not at fault no need to feel any guilt or shame or run away avoid taunts or be scared of social torture. But not everyone who goes through this has courage and patience like her, for them, the system needs to step up. The story of her fight is a great inspiration for all of us. Bhanwari Devi is definitely a national icon, our politicians and justice systems need to learn something from her.  

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Links:

1. 'I have to hide my face in public, the man who raped me roams free'

2. http://selfrealization-vinay.blogspot.com/2012/12/yes-we-all-are-guilty.html

Khurshid Anwar - Guilty or victim of media trial

I read news about the suicide of Mr. Khurshid Anwar, a social worker and director of an NGO called the Institute for Social Democracy on my Facebook wall. I didn't know about him before reading the news about his death. The reason why this news caught my attention was because of the cause of his suicide, which was the depression caused because of sexual assault charges leveled against him by a 23-year-old girl who worked for some other NGO. Another reason was, that many women who knew Mr. Anwar personally were really surprised and shocked by this allegation and believed that there might be something fishy going on in this case. They think these charges might be false and someone was trying to implicate him in a crime he did not commit. If this is true, then, this may not be a suicide but a sort of murder. Maybe after a detailed investigation, the real truth will come out, but life is already lost. The role played by some news channels who accused Mr. Anwar of rape is also questioned. Can the media pass on the verdict of guilty or nonguilty without any trial? Such media trials can put a lot of stress on concerned people and results can be devastating as in this case. Media has the right to report the news but do they have the right to take sides and deliver verdicts without any substantial evidence?

Any victim of sexual assault should get all the possible support and help, and the guilty should not be spared in such cases no matter who they are. But at the same time, we should also need to make sure that such laws are not misused for personal or professional gains. Nowadays many cases of misuse of anti-dowry and anti-casteism laws are reported, and there are also cases of false sexual harassment or rape charges, because of the nature of these crimes victim immediately gets all the sympathy, and the accused is immediately painted as evil or declared guilty. No doubt that the victim should get all the required support but at the same time accused should also get the chance to defend and prove his/her innocence. The process should be fair for both of them. The rights of both the accused and the victim should be respected and honored. Media, social networks, and other electronic mediums also should deal with these types of cases sensibly and responsibly. Media plays a very important role in any civilized and progressive society. They are responsible for communicating correct and nonbiased information to people but nowadays we hardly see them doing this. Most of them are becoming like any other entertainment channels that cater to whatever their audience likes to watch, this is really pathetic.

Social and news media also played a very important role in some cases like the Jessica Lal murder case to get justice for the victim. However, tough competition between various news channels to grab the sensational news and report it first has created a situation where there is hardly any time to authenticate the information. Many times the channels broadcast the news as received before validating it or even checking the source and sometimes this creates a lot of damage to concerned parties. Recent sting operation tapes against AAP which were broadcasted on many news channels is another such example. I am against censoring media by any government organization, they should be independent, then only they can do their job without any fear of adverse government actions, but at the same time, they need to be responsible, with complete freedom also comes a lot of responsibility. They need to be really careful with the authenticity of the contents of their reporting when a large section of society depends on them as a source of authentic information. I hope this sense of responsibility prevails in current media houses that are controlled by some of the big corporations. I hope this doesn't become just another business but remains an independent pillar of democracy. If not, then we might see more victims like Khurshid Anwar who were declared guilty before any fair trial.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Links:
1. What Khurshid Anwar's suicide should tell the media
2. NGO director jumps to death as rape charges are levelled against him by 23-year-old woman

Tarun Tejpal, Tehelka and sting operation against AAP

Two breaking news headlines grabbed my attention yesterday, one was a sting operation against the newly formed political party AAP by some website called Media Sarkar, and the other was sexual misconduct or rape charges against Tehlka's editor in chief Mr. Tarun Tejpal. In both cases, the integrity and actions of the entire organization or party were questioned because of the misconduct of a few individuals. No doubt the questions raised in both the cases are serious and they need to be addressed but that should not be the reason to target the entire organization and try to bring it down. 

No doubt that Tarun was an integral part of Tehelka (I understand that he resigned from his position so he is no more with Tehelka) but Tarun is not Tehelka and Tehelka is not Tarun. People should learn to differentiate the organization from the individual, the magazine has done a lot of good work in the past and all that work is the result of many creative and courageous journalists. Whatever Tarun did is wrong, it's his own responsibility and he should face the law and whatever punishment comes his way. It is also true that in a way this whole issue was handled by Shoma Choudhary, managing editor of Tehelka raised eyebrows, people expected somewhat better and strict action from them rather than something that looked like an attempt to downplay the incident. I hope they don't intend to intimidate the victim otherwise it will be sad to see the entire organization going down because of the actions of a few people. Sexual harassment in the workplace is a very serious issue. The Indian government as well as private organizations need to do a lot of work in this area so that these types of crimes are promptly reported and investigated to punish the culprits, no matter who they are. The victims of these crimes need all the support and encouragement they need. Tarun Tejpal's case looks pretty black and white as per media reports, it seems he accepted his mistake, and now law enforcement agencies need to take proper action and deliver justice. Many times such crimes go unreported for several reasons, there has to be a proper system and mechanism to detect and monitor such crimes.

Another news was about a sting operation against AAP, a newly formed party that is creating big waves in Delhi assembly elections. Both Congress and BJP (the two biggest national political parties in India, with huge backing and money power) are facing tough competition from AAP. actually, no one (including me) expected AAP to get so much popularity and to create such an impact in their first election. Sting operations are an integral part of investigative journalism, this technique is used to expose crimes that are difficult to prove otherwise. By definition, a sting operation is a deceptive operation used to catch a person committing a crime. This method has been used successfully to expose many bribery scandals, and corrupt practices in politics and bureaucracy. At the same time edited versions of video footage of these operations, by using the technique of selective editing or cut-paste technique, can be used to project a certain image of a person or party (positive or negative). Therefore, any inquiry panel investigating allegations based on these types of operations likes to see raw (or unedited) footage of any such sting operations, this is very common practice. AAP is demanding the same and I think they are within their rights with this demand. They also promised strict action against anyone who is found guilty after examination by their own panel or any independent constitutional agency (like the election commission). The timing of this sting operation is also questionable and looks very motivated to malign the image of AAP just before the election. I think their response was fairly positive and they are willing to accept that there might be something that needs immediate attention. This party entered the political arena not only with the intention to win but with an intention to change the rules of the game, to make it more transparent and fair for everyone. Today in India politics is considered a dirty game. Politicians are assumed to be corrupt and greedy by common people, maybe if more good people enter this profession they can change its image and this is what I want AAP to do. They should force other parties to field good, honest candidates with clean records, at least make them not give tickets to people with a serious criminal record, or people who are facing serious cases against them in court. If they can do this, this itself will be a huge improvement according to me.

Time will tell what will be the result of both investigations, but in both cases, the entire organization should not be blamed for the misconduct of a few people involved with that organization. I still don't think that it's correct to label all leaders from the BJP or Congress as corrupt because many of them are corrupt. There are many sincere and honest people in all these parties but as these parties are huge the percentage of corrupt people is also more, I am against gross generalization. But at the same time, I am not happy in general with the double standards used by these parties and also with their very complacent attitude towards corruption. They are directly or indirectly responsible for institutionalizing corruption. I hope this situation will change in the near future and people of India will get a more accountable and clean government which they desperately need. I hope parties like AAP act as a catalyst to initiate this reaction of cleaning the system on a larger scale. The question is not only about AAP or the dreams of Arvind Kejriwal, the question is about the expectations and hopes of millions of Indians who are waiting for the day when they get a clean and accountable government. Their hopes deserve a chance, and their dreams deserve consideration.

Thanks for reading and please share your views on this topic.

[Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing]

Links:
1. Mission Lokpal by Media Sarkar
2. Tehelka's Tarun Tejpal: Sex scandal batters India's top investigative title
3. http://www.tehelka.com/statement/
4. Tehelka case: Tarun Tejpal had totally different version, says Shoma Chaudhury
5. Why Sting Operation on AAP came just before Assembly Elections?

Is there any way to reduce rape and sexual abuse incidents?

The recent brutal rape case of a young girl in the Indian capital New Delhi has sparked huge debate and discussions in social media, the Indian parliament, and newspapers. People from various sections of society offered many suggestions about how to put a brake on these types of crimes, what type of punishment might help to prevent these types of incidents, and how to deal with the criminals who commit such heinous crimes. Suggestions cover a very wide spectrum. Some say capital punishment is the only right punishment for such crimes; some say hang them in public so that others won't dare to commit such crimes; some say no trial directly hang them or shoot them; some say castrate these males so that they won't be able to engage in any such acts in future even if they want to; some say women should be more careful with what they wear, where they go and how they conduct themselves. There are many suggestions like this. By just surfing the net and one can find many passionate posts that are very critical about India's law and order situation, politicians, government and blame them for this situation and crimes.

No doubt that it's the government's responsibility to protect its citizens from antisocial elements and make them feel safe to carry out their day-to-day activities without any fear. These types of incidents definitely shake the confidence of the residents in their government's ability to protect their interests. Unfortunately what we are seeing this time from the government's side is not very promising. They are trying to play the blame game. They are trying to suppress protests and are not willing to take any substantial steps toward finding a solution for these types of problems. This is very sad but this is what is happening. Another issue is as a society what are we doing to protect our people? How are we training women and men to tackle these types of issues? What do they think about each other? How women are projected in mainstream media and movies? How are they treated in their families? All these are very important questions and somehow directly or indirectly related to the question that why these types of crimes happen in our society?

Rape is not only about sex. If it is only a question of sexual desire then there are so many ways to satisfy that desire legally, without harming any person, or at least by using means which won't involve any violence. Then why do people choose this route? Rape does involve sexual acts but it's not a voluntary sexual encounter between two people. Sex is an integral part of love between adult couples but rape is pure violence, it involves violence, not sex. It's not only about lust or sexual desire but it's like hunting, damaging, or crushing a person physically and mentally. It's a very brutal act and that's why it demands very strict punishment. There is no age limit for rape victims they range from young kids to old women, it can happen in homes, bedrooms, moving buses, cars, and almost anywhere. It seems no place is a safe place nowadays.  The people who commit rape are definitely not normal people, for sure they have some psychological issues. They are not fit to roam in society freely, and they need treatment, as well as punishment.

I don't think capital punishment or hanging these rapists in public will reduce this crime. Already these types of punishments are practiced in some countries, and the situation of women is really pathetic in most of these countries. There is capital punishment for murder but that doesn't stop many from committing a murder. Rather this approach of capital punishment for all rapes might backfire and might increase incidents of  murder of rape victims. Many rapists kill their victims in the hope that they won't be caught because there won't be any evidence, so, I think that capital punishment may not be a very efficient way to stop this crime. Hanging rapists in public or torturing them in front of the public are very gruesome and inhuman acts for any democratic country and most probably these punishments will produce the same result as normal capital punishment. In most of sexual abuse cases, the offender is male or group of males (in case of gang rape), then why not make them incapable of committing this type of crime again and keep them imprisoned? We have modern medical techniques and methods available to do this, so why not use them? It will be a less gruesome and more effective punishment and there is a very high possibility that this fear of losing their so-called manhood might deter others from committing this crime.

Along with this punishment social and economic independence of women is very important. They should get equal respect and fair treatment in their own families. Boys and girls should be treated equally. Girls should not be considered soft targets for sexual abuse. We need to start sex education so young kids know what is proper and improper contact, what can be considered sexual harassment, and what is not. This type of education and training should be an integral part of the high school curriculum and this training should be mandatory at all workplaces. The solution to this problem is not so straightforward, the problem is very complicated so it should be tackled at multiple levels. We should utilize all the resources that we have in our hands to tackle this issue. It might take a long time but we should start working towards it as soon as possible. We already waited too long and should not delay any longer.

Let's start by changing our attitude towards women and let's start this change from ourselves, from our own families. If we can at least change our family's attitude then only we can dream of changing society or the whole world. The government also needs to step up, they have a very important role to play in this whole process. Lawmakers should show the courage to take the necessary steps to tackle these issues. Huge protests and widespread public outcry clearly show that people are fed up with just hollow words and fake promises they need some solid actions. People need a responsible and accountable administration that can respond to their demands and understand their needs and I don't think this is too much to ask from any government in any democratic country.

Thanks for reading and please share your views about this topic.

(Copyright: Vinay Thakur. Please contact the author for re-posting or publishing)