"Is our administration too insensitive to deal with sensitive issues? Has our administration learned anything after 16th Dec?The time to introspect has almost passed. I think we have missed some critical lessons midway...."
The
occasion was a celebrated award function of a leading India media
agency and the channel as a tribute was paying their respects to the
Delhi rape victims’ family and her friend who was there with her that
fateful night .The Prime Minister and the head of the broadcasting
channel felicitated them with a memento to show solidarity. In her
shivering, emotional voice, the rape victims’ mother folded her hand and
pleaded to all present that the juvenile who has been let off by the
court is brought to terms and is punished severely by the court.
The
issue which is pending in the court is whether the Indian law should be
retrospective and should enforce laws to punish the juvenile who was
the most ‘brutal’ that night with the girl. In my view, yes. As I write
this letter, a 5 year old girl is battling for her life in Delhi’s AIIMS
Hospital after having been raped severely by a laborer with his friend
in Delhi who hails from Bihar. The brutality with which he committed his
crime wasn’t just beastly but cruel to an extent that he inserted
candle and oil bottle in her private parts. In fact, after raping her
for two days, he even strangled her and thinking her to be dead, left
her in a pool of blood. Even to think of the pain that she had to go
through brought tears to my eyes. What followed after the discovery of
the rape wasn’t just shocking but appalling. When the victims ‘parents
took her to the Delhi Police to lodge an FIR then they tried to bribe
them by giving Rs. 2000 such that it doesn’t defames Delhi even further
as the Rape Capital of the country . So shambolic was the police’s
attempt to rescue the girl that they didn’t even searched the building
where she lived and eventually she was found in the ground floor of the
same building.
It was then that the Victims Parents called Arvind
Kejriwal to intervene and he told them to stay there and came over
immediately. Even while the protesters were protesting as to why the FIR
wasn’t lodged by the police immediately, ACP Bani Singh Ahlawat slapped
a girl protester. The role of Indian media who no matter what is
flashy and sensational as the West has been exemplary amidst
all this. It repeatedly captured the tragedy and even the footage of him
slapping the girl which further led to the ACP’s suspension.
Yesterday, the
police along with the cooperation of Bihar police nabbed the culprit –
Manoj Sah and his friend Pradeep who committed the heinous crime. It was
great to see that the Panchayat of the village to which they
belonged– Bharthua Panchayat , announced that they will boycott him and
won’t let him step into the village even if gets out on bail . His
family, wife and parents have disowned him and have asked the Government
to give him the strictest punishment that he deserves . It was good to
see that even amidst all the negativity, the society did and exemplified
what actually needed to be done. The villagers with their limited
exposure took a decision which was righteous while on the other hand the
Delhi police was so adamant that not only they rejected filing an FIR
for the rape but even went to the extent of slapping a protester who was
demanding justice for the victim . The situation brings us to the
question as to whether we lack an administration that is compassionate
enough to deal with sensitive issues.
Even
during this tragedy, there was the murkiness of politics all over where
some factions of the media who have been sycophants of the Government
even accused Aam Aadmi Party (Common Man’s party) of vandalizing and
raising voices and causing furor on the issue. The Prime Minister though
keeps condemning the Delhi Police for their inaction , hasn't done
anything concrete in the direction of ensuring that the Police behavior
is checked when they had previously been brutal on the protesters at
India gate in January . Mere lip service is what the common man gets
after every tragic incident. I just wish that politics and our
administration rise above the boundaries of Politics and function
effectively in this country which is otherwise seen as poised to take
over the world’s economy in future.
In a country
where one party accuses the other one that a bomb blast would help it
gain sympathy for the next elections, I don’t expect much empathy from
Politicians for the common man. While on one hand, I feel that common
people have learned a great deal ever since 16th December , the
administration and politicians need to learn a big deal and be aware of
the fact that in a Democracy, the real power lies in the hands of the
common man . It’s good to see that the common man has risen to the
occasion. I just hope that this change removes the chauvinistic mindset
that is so deeply engrained in Indian men. Casual acceptance of violent
nature must be punished and brought to terms; a survey clearly shows
that a son who has seen his father physically beating his mother is 4.7
times more inclined towards violence. Let’s hope that we as Indian men
overcome this mentality. Let’s hope that in future we are able to think
and act like humans rather than vultures.
Written by
Shashank
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