Wake up India before it is too late

Monday morning’s (17th December, 2012) newspaper brought jaw dropping, mouth covering, “Oh My God” reactions on the face of many. Delhi has always been highlighted as the capital of the country but with the recent turn of events it is slowly moving to the race of rape capital. I would still disagree on this as I do not have the statistics on the number of cases (including reported and unreported). There are other cities where a girl is raped every 10 minutes but considering the lack of media activism in such cities, it is not given the hype which it duly deserves.

SMS, Facebook posts were abuzz describing what exactly the poor girl (though she is truly a fighter with a will to live in this inhumane world) went through when she was returning from Munirka to Dwarka – a route which I often used as a student when I was in college (and also the route where one a popular bus Route no. 764 plies but sadly it is often full or having a low frequency). No one could have ever imagined that a trip back home along with a male friend (many call it her boyfriend due to our typical Indian stereotyped nature of labeling a girl and a guy as boyfriend/girlfriend) could be a pathway through hell (I am sure even hell cant be that worse). This is not the right platform to describe what the girl actually went through as it would only bring tears to the eyes of a reader.

Where are we wrong? Are we inhuman? Have we lost the meaning of humanity? How can someone be so cruel? These are just some of the questions which an average reader typically asks but why is this happening? People say that men are inhuman well I can say it is partly true. There are some men who have immense respect for women but then there are some who hate them to hell. Women in India have always been treated as unwanted, one who can be ruled upon. It starts right from birth of a female child, where the mother in law (typical sasu maa) looks down upon the daughter in law (typical bahu) if a girl child is born as if it is her fault. They are unaware of the fact that biologically it is the men who are responsible (obviously it is the destiny but still if you really want to blame someone you should blame the men). Nevertheless, the female child never cared by the grandmother grows up into a teenager and taught basic skills likes cooking tea, food (including dal, roti, rice). She is often taught the fact that you should respect men. Although the male child is never taught this in most household rather they are often treated as a king. They are never taught any cooking related stuff. She is often told that she will be married to a prince who will come on a horse and stuff like that.

Indians often use a term “Pati Parmeshwar” (translated to Husband God) there is no such term as “Patni Parmeshwari” (translated to Wife Goddess). I would like to ask why? Why this gender bias has always haunted our typical Indian household. Where were we wrong? Were the Vedas wrong? Were the Pandit’s who translated the inscriptions sexist? Whatever the case maybe it is the female who suffer in today’s world. They have no one to save them except a few men who fight for others right with all might.

I am sure you all remember how Delhi came together to support the Anna movement at RamLila for a common cause of corruption. Where are the supporters when it comes to right for women? I am sure many “To-Be” or “Ex” rapists must be present at the Anna movement as well. Mr. Arvind Kejriwall took about 4 days to call for a meeting by sending out this message

“Repeated rapes. No punishments. Why? Reach Jantar Mantar 2 pm Friday, 21 Dec. Some rape victim families would also join – Arvind Kejriwal. Fwd2all”.

Is this not called politicizing the issue? Why doesn’t he hold the government to ransom for passing a bill for speedy justice and capital punishment to rape victims?

Seems like the “Aam Aadmi Party” is not so aam or they just want to have some aam (mangoes). Many AAP supporters will say “Cmon at least the AAP is going to bring a change and once they come to power they will completely change the system” I would just like to say one thing “I hope so or else we would just add the AAP to the list of all other parties who blabber a lot and do nothing. Maybe I have deviated myself from the core issue and let us go back and introspect a bit more.

The women community have taken up lot of forms like Women’s commissions, Female cell, etc but none of this really works as this these institutions are more on paper than to bring about a change. Also, one should ask another important question, how many people would have really helped the girl if they saw her languishing in that state? I am sure people would have turned a blind eye with a reason that police will keep calling us and irritating us and even before that suspecting us. The police should change they ways of working and ensure hassle free experience for the ones who help. People are often reluctant to help just because they will be tortured for helping a girl in the form of court hearing, etc.

I would agree to a post on my cousin Ankit Rajvanshi’s wall

We talk of educating the females to reduce female illiteracy but what happens with them , they are physically harrassed .
We talk of encouraging female employment so that females also come shoulder to shoulder in comparison to men but what happens , they are molested fearlessly on roads , in buses and streets .
We talk of female empowerment and representation on national and state level but what hapoens , they even do not get justice in time .

In reference to Delhi case ,Some so called ORTHODOX will say "she must not have gone out so late and girls must wear traditional clothes" . Is it a guarantee that rapists only molest girls wearing jeans and top . In my sense , salwar kameez doesn't work as iron clothes afterall its also made of cotton and woolen . Fault is not in dressing and late outgoing but in the mentality of people . 
Need is to inculcate into people values and civilised manners .
Need is to reinforce police system . 
Need is to spread vigilance among people .
Need is to bring strict and fear awakening legislation .
Need is to teach all to RESPECT WOMEN .
Need is to act more and speak less .
Need is to wakeup and bring socio-political change 

In my opinion there are two primary reasons for this to happen.

The first one is where your friend, acquaintance, obsessive lover turns into a rapist. It can be to take revenge, can be lust, or a lot many reasons that the psychologists can comment upon. The other reason is where a villager or a person from rural background moves to a typical urban setup and finds women in a very different frame. We have two separate and disconnected India – one rural, with age old traditions still prevailing and the other transforming India – one that is moving towards westernization, one that is progressing towards more of an American culture.

An average rural Indian is not able to digest women entering into the battle field that have always been dominated by men. They have always seen women as unwanted and submissive. When they see women working, liberal, they feel vulnerable and see them as a threat to their dominance. This is where they try to show their physical superiority over them. It is time that men grow up and understand that being physically strong does not justify that you are superior and the other person is inferior. They are unable to bear women working, taking the centerstage. Many men feel insecure about this change. I strongly feel there should be an era of either neutralism or female chauvinism. This is the only way the society can change and move towards a better environment. We have so much to do in a developing country, if we keep battling with these internal threats we would lose the opportunity to grow into a superpower one day. The issue needs to be addressed quickly and from all angles not just by blaming different institutions.

India gate protests, female parliamentarians, other sections of the society have come up with a common voice “Capital Punishment for rapists” this maybe good and worth it but then one should drill down to the root cause of the problem and not just look at a cure. Prevention as they all say is always better than the cure, though sadly capital punishment is not a cure. There are other voices demanding castration and other punishments like using a hunter and stuff but trust me the Human Rights foundation will never allow this to happen ever and we being a democratic country have to listen to all the sides before coming up with a conclusion. It should be a collaborative effort from all the players/parties involved.

Firstly, the NGO’s, Corporate CSR arms, Government functions should work together to improve the status of education in all the schools because this is where the problem starts or where hatred is injected in the minds of individuals. There should be a mandatory subject on “Moral Values” irrespective of the mode of communication – English, Hindi or any other regional language. Students should be allowed to communicate with each other across different age group to help them understand and accept the opposite sex. We cannot live by being disconnected, we need to be collaborative and work towards a common goal – an individual’s career growth leading to overall country’s growth.

Secondly, there is an urgent need for reforms both from the law and order as well as the judiciary. The police should have sense of accountability and sense of protectionist attitude towards citizens. The judiciary should work towards improving the conviction rate, speeding up the trial and working towards stricter punishment for such cases. The parliament on the other hand should table and pass a bill that would enable stricter punishment for such individuals and immediately ban sitting MP’s/MLA’s if they have any such case (including sexual assault, molestation) against them. It is time we wake up to the bitter reality that this case has brought forward. We are unaware about so many crimes that are committed across India, this being a case from Delhi has been highlighted.

It is time that we Indians introspect instead of blaming the government, police as support for women cannot be in the form of a Facebook share, a like or forwarding message but more in the form of change of opinion about them accept that they have the power to rule as well. Another problem that I feel is still prevailing in our society is that this issue is often termed as a female issue and men try to shrug it off their shoulders that since it your problem you deal with it but one should understand that is the men who are involved in such a heinous crime.

It is high time that women and young girls start investing more time in learning self defense rather than spending time chit chatting with loved ones and men should get their act right. Government and law makers on the other hand should look at making devices like Tazer Guns legal.

My heart goes out to that girl who is fighting a battle, I hope she comes out victorious and shows men that women are truly made of steel.

I would like to leave a note by saying “India and fellow Indians, it is time to open your eyes and wake up and introspect”, “and women fight with all your might to get things right”.

Image Credit http://nitashapanda.blogspot.in/