NEW DELHI – The depreciation of the Rupee and India’s unfolding economic woes may not be the utmost concern for the average Indian woman.
What matters most to the fairer sex in India for now is their safety in public places or, for that matter, home, office, anywhere.
If the latest alleged sexual assault in Jodhpur, Rajasthan is anything to go by, women in this once fabled land of maharajahs are not safe even in the company of their venerated godman.
It is ironic that this is the country that has seen women in top positions – prime minister Indira Gandhi, president Prathibha Patel; countless Bollywood starlets who are literally the face of India – Aishwarya Rai, Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif; and where countless goddess are worshipped across the landscape.
Yet, in the land where Shah Jahan immortalised his eternal love for his wife Mumtaz Mahal with one of the seven wonders of the world, the Taj Mahal, women are subjected to atrocities from womb to tomb.
Sex selection abortion, female infanticide, sexual assault, forced prostitution, dowry killings and acid attacks has made India an unwelcome place for women.
INDIANS HAD ENOUGH
Crimes against women appear to be endemic in this sub-continent of more than 1.2 billion people, with the high profile fatal rape incident on a bus in New Delhi in December 2012 unraveling the perturbing malaise in India.
However, one has to be fair to India, atrocities against women also happens elsewhere including in developed countries. Yet the alarming spate of atrocities against women in recent years has created a paranoia on women’s safety.
Many women groups fear that misogyny runs deep in the male dominated Indian society, hence the rise in atrocities against Indian women who in the last few decades have stepped into many of the male domains.
Nonetheless, Indians are deeply frustrated because with each passing day more women end up being sexually abused or harrassed, attacked or even murdered.
This despite the various measures taken by the government – severe punishment for the perpetrators, introduction of help line and increasing the number of women in the police force.
The women and the authorities seem to be at their wits end as it seems there is nothing to stop or help reduce crimes against women of India who are often vulnerable and lack empowerment.
A netizen, who tweets by the name @captain_speakin has aptly described the frustration of Indians; “We go through the same five stages after every incident that shakes us – 1. Anger 2. Outrage 3. Helpless 4. Acceptance 5. Apathy… Nothing changes.”
According to “Crime in India 2012” report, a total of 244,270 crimes including rape and assault on women transcending different age groups were reported in 2012, an increase by 6.8 per cent from 228,650 in 2011.
THE RECORDS DON’T TELL THE TRUE STORY
Nonetheless, the statistics do not reflect the true picture as many cases go unreported due to the social stigma feared by the highly conservative Indian society.
This writer based in New Delhi, the national capital that has earned the unenviable moniker ‘India’s rape capital’, vouches that living in India could well be an agonising experience for women.
News report of kids as young as two and five years old being raped every other day tells the chilling truth how dangerous India can be for a woman.
In July, in a macabre incident, a five-year old was raped and brutally stabbed 80 times in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.
And the perpetrators not only involve vicious individuals and gangs but even the self styled holy men of India, whose reputation of being sexual predators under the guise of spirituality is nothing new.
The recent arrest of Asaram Bapu, a self styled guru from Jodhpur with a following of millions across the globe, over allegations that he sexually assaulted a 16-year-old girl at his retreat reveals the dark side among many of the holymen.
This episode comes at the heels of another highly publicised recent incident in Mumbai where a 23-year old photojournalist was gang raped by five men in Mumbai while on assignment.
These incidents serve as a grim reminder for the Indian women that sexual predators are lurking in every corner of the country and that there is no safe haven for them.
In a nutshell, it is a daily battle for women in this part of the world in ensuring their safety. One is neither safe at home nor on the streets.
OTHER WOMEN ARE NOT SPARED AS WELL
This writer has also come across incidents of Malaysian women in New Delhi facing sexual harassment or other inappropriate demeanours.
A Malaysian in her 30s had related to this writer that during a train ride, a co-passenger whose sleeping compartment was just above hers tried to touch her intimate part by slipping his hands through the gaps.
“That was a horrible experience. I was so scared that I never slept throughout the eight-hour journey to my destination,” said the Malaysian, who wanted to remain anonymous.
“I will never, ever travel in a train in India. At least not alone,” she said. Another Malaysian, who was here as a solo tourist ended fearing for her life after the hotel manager tried to force his way into her room on the pretext of providing ‘special service’.
She reacted fast by jamming the door handle with a coffee table and called a Malaysian friend who she knew in New Delhi for help.
THE WRITER’S OWN EXPERIENCE
Now has this writer come across any incident in India that can be considered an affront to a woman’s dignity? Many times. At post offices, markets, or even posh malls, where despite ample space, men will try to rub against women.
Though I prepared myself for a lot of challenges that could come my way as a journalist in India, but I was not prepared to face unsavoury characters and people who have no respect for women.
I could still recall getting a sharp chilling stare from a few men in a train, obviously they might have had some bad intentions.
What did I do? I just stared back and walked away to another coach of the metro rail. Ironically, it all happened during the Delhi gang rape protest where the metro was the only way to get to the nearest location.
Nevertheless, there are still two sides of India with the other being a country rich in history and legacy, and its people highly cultured and with great sense of hospitality.
– BERNAMA
