A collective failure

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A collective failure

Wednesday, 07 October 2020 | Kalyani Shankar

The solution to the increasing number of rapes and atrocities on women in the country lies in us, not elsewhere

Once again the whole country is aghast at the alleged gang-rape and brutalisation of a 19-year-old Dalit girl from Uttar Pradesh (UP) who succumbed to her injuries in a Delhi hospital recently after fighting for her life for 15 days. Even though bowing to pressure, the four accused men belonging to the upper caste were arrested and are now in police custody, it was the callous attitude of the local police and the UP administration, which led to her sad end. Had the girl been from an upper caste family, the whole episode would have ended different. But as things stand, after the alleged rape in Hathras, the Government of UP hastily cremated the victim in the middle of the night, ostensibly to “avoid large scale violence” and briefly barred the media and Opposition politicians from visiting the victim’s village and family, prompting suspicions of a cover-up. Sadly, even over seven decades after India’s Independence, Dalits still remain on the fringes of society and face discrimination despite many laws protecting them.

Though top Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra marched to the residence of the murdered girl in Hathras, the police did not allow them to enter the area. There was a showdown after which they met the girl’s family. Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad has also accused the State Government of  inaction. However, the two former chief ministers of UP, Akhilesh Yadav (Samajwadi Party) and the BSP chief Mayawati (who is herself a Dalit) have confined themselves to tweets condemning the Government. Bowing to the public and political pressure, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath announced a CBI probe into the crime.

The Hathras case is not just one more rape case. It shows that whatever laws are passed by Parliament, women, particularly poor Dalit women, have to struggle for justice, right from registering a First Information Report (FIR). According to the 2019 annual report of the National Crime Records Bureau, 32,033 rape cases were registered across the country, or an average of 88 cases daily or one rape every 16 minutes. The December 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape case shook the conscience of the nation and there were large scale protests. Even then it took eight years for the justice system to execute the accused. The Government allocated a huge amount for the aid of rape survivors after the Nirbhaya case but it has not been distributed satisfactorily. Though new laws were passed since 2012 increasing penalties for sexual assault, rape, and sexual abuse, they have not deterred rapists. As the Hathras case shows, the perpetrators are still not scared of the rule of law. And only a vigilant media brings out such shocking incidents and helps the victims get justice, when all attempts are made to bury their voices.

What is the remedy and do we need more stringent laws? What is needed are not more laws but the strict implementation of the existing ones by the police, the Government and law enforcement agencies. The mindset of the police and the judicial system should change and they should be more sensitive and sympathetic to rape survivors. Complaints should be filed without delay and harassment of the victim. The backlog of cases is stupendous and justice takes too long to be delivered. Justice delayed is justice denied. It is important that the judicial system respond to public needs.

Second, it is a sad commentary that despite the Supreme Court’s observations that judicial reforms were needed urgently, the Government is dragging its feet on them. Archaic laws need to be amended. It is bizarre that when a child of two or three is raped and is unable to give evidence, the culprits go scot-free because the mother’s evidence is considered secondary. How can a two-year-old child give evidence of rape? The onus of proof should not lie with the victim. Third, building up of weak cases by the investigating agencies, including the CBI has enabled influential criminals to go free or get away with minimum punishment. The fourth is the need for educational reforms. There is no doubt that the system needs some shaking up. Children should be taught moral values and respect for women right from their childhood. In a country where the Shakti cult is still relevant, girls should be taught self-defence in schools.

The fifth is the social outlook. Society has to change its present attitude. Many women still do not go to the police to report these incidents for lack of faith in the system. Till rapists are not brought to book swiftly in the country, they will continue to rape with impunity.

A watchful society, supportive of the victims is very necessary to check these heinous crimes. It is apt to remember the quotation in William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. Cassius confides in his friend Brutus that in the best interests of the public Julius Caesar must be stopped from becoming the emperor of the Roman Empire. Cassius tells him, “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, but ourselves, that we are underlings.” The solution to the increasing number of rapes and atrocities on women lies in us, not elsewhere.

 (The writer is a senior journalist)

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