Alarming rise in crimes against women in India

The Marine Drive that connects Puri to Konark in Orissa is a gorgeously picturesque sight. You can see the waves crashing against the shore even as trees play hide and seek with the Bay of Bengal. For the 27-year-old married woman Sobha (name changed) who stays in a village near Puri, Marine Drive will now be a ghastly memory that will haunt her forever. On November 3, 2007, Sobha and her uncle boarded a bus to go to Konark, trying desperately to avoid a gang of motorcycle riding youngsters who were hounding her and passing lewd remarks. Minutes after the bus rumbled on the smooth road, the bikers stopped the bus and dragged Sobha out even as the driver, the conductor and almost 50 other passengers remained impotent mute witnesses. Sobha was repeatedly gang-raped by five youngsters, her life crashing even as the waves crashed at the shore.

Less than two hours after revellers rang in the year 2008, Mumbai lost whatever semblance of shame it was holding on to in the posh suburb of Juhu. A marauding mob of wolves pounced upon two NRI females, stripped their clothes, groped them, molested them and fell upon them like a pack of wild dogs before a conscientious traffic cop rescued the females.

Bitti Mohanty is the son of a Director General of Police. In 2006, he was accused of raping a German tourist in Rajasthan and sentenced to 7 years rigorous imprisonment by the court. Yet, the high and mighty have their own ways and in November 2006, Bitti jumped parole and is still absconding; even though his DGP dad B.B. Mohanty languished in a jail in Jaipur on charges of abetting Bitti’s escape.

Twentythree-year-old Samlin Jenita had married an NRI and gone to the United States to chase her dreams. In 2007, she was airlifted back to Chennai in a critical condition with multiple bone fractures and other serious injuries. Fed up of even torture to make Samlin fetch more dowry, her NRI in-laws simply threw her out of a speeding car. It was only a good Samaritan in the form of a Pakistani doctor that saved her from certain death in the US.

Welcome to India Shining, India Rising and a perverted India pining. In 2006, there were close to 20,000 cases of ‘reported’ rape; that works out to 55 a day. There were more than 36,000 ‘reported’ cases of molestation in the same year; almost 100 every day. And close to 18,000 women were abducted and kidnapped in 2006; close to 50 every day. Each day in 2006, about 22 women were tortured to death for dowry; not to speak of more than 170 each day that were harassed and tortured for dowry. The figures for 2007 are not out. But the unprecedented rise in violent crimes against women across India shows disturbing signs of social behaviour and the efficacy of the criminal justice system.

Incredible India is fast gaining notoriety as the rape capital of the world. (Of course, Manmohan Singh can claim that the great Indian civilisation scores over the upstart United States led by George Bush: more than 200 women are raped every day in the land of golden opportunities) Says Ambika Soni, Union Tourism Minister, “Reports of attacks on tourists that are coming from various states is very disturbing. This is certainly going to impact the tourism industry in India.” Forget the tourism industry for a while. The animal like behaviour of males –both individually, in groups and as a mob – reflect very poorly on the changing attitudes in Indian society. Says Dr Vandana Prakash, Clinical Psychologist at Fortis Hospital, “Crimes against women (especially rapes) have always been there, but cases of molestation have risen dramatically, particularly in the metros. One factor to blame is the media. The way the news is presented and the treatment it is given acts more as a stimulant than a deterrent”. Surely, Indian news channels need to ponder a while even as they chase TRPs like louts chase women.

No doubt, media must take its part of blame for sensationalising stories of molestation and rape rather than treating the stories and victims in a dignified and compassionate manner. (One senior Lok Sabha MP says, on condition of anonymity, that loutish and aggressive behaviour of parliamentarians increased dramatically after they became aware that Lok Sabha proceedings were being telecast live to the whole nation!). Yet, in many ways, this sudden spurt in crimes against women is also a reflection of the struggle between Bharat and India. India belongs to the upwardly mobile. Westernised and well-heeled urban Indians for whom air kisses and even smooching inside parked cars is par for the course. Bharat belongs to Indians who yearn for the better things of life and yet have been denied the privileges that an ‘Indian’ enjoys because of background, lack of education and the requisite skill sets. This tussle between the traditional haves and have-nots is becoming an explosive mix in the country. Says Dr Sameer Malhotra, senior Psychiatrist at Fortis: “Fragile self-esteem, anti-social traits, drug use, peer influence, changing social norms with emphasis on materialism, seeing and using women as commodities to promote materialistic gains and aggression and stimulation as part of ‘manliness’ are some factors behind the growing incidents of crimes against women.” That helps explain the savage behaviour of many Indian males, but it is no comfort to the more than 100,000 ‘reported’ victims of sexual harassment of some kind every year. It is said, if you take into account the unreported cases, at least one million women a year suffer from some abuse or other. “Says activist Madhu Kishwar, “Even upwardly mobile women can’t claim that they are safe”. Kishwar was recently assaulted by a mob of goons in a Delhi neighbourhood where she was promoting a model scheme for street hawkers.

But how is it that about 2,500 girls, teenagers and women get abused, harassed, molested, sexually assaulted and tortured even as Indian law and the Indian courts take increasingly deterrent steps? Indian women only have to thank the hopelessly outdated, inefficient, callous and cruel justice delivery system. Says well-known lawyer Prashant Bhushan, who has been battling for a more efficient and transparent judicial system for years, “The legal system in this country is kind of moribund. It is extremely inaccessible for the middle class and the poor. It is no surprise in that case that crimes against women are increasing. If rich culprits, or any culprit for that matter, are not brought to book it will only encourage them.” Look at the case of Bitti Mohanty. The son of DGP of Orissa, Bitti, managed to obtain parole despite a 7-year-term and promptly jumped parole. It is only a sustained media campaign of 15 months that saw his DGP dad being arrested. But of course, policy makers keep trying to find out ways and means to prevent the rise and rise of these ghastly crimes that shame Indian society. Says the State Minister for Home, Government of India, Sri Prakash Jaiswal: “An inter-ministerial committee, comprising social justice, tourism and women and child welfare ministries, has been formed which will look into the matter and accordingly, the Union Home Ministry will suggest steps to state governments during the chief ministers' meeting to be held in Delhi.” Minister Jaiswal is, no doubt, genuinely worried and concerned at the alarming rise in such crimes, but each day that the Committee deliberates will see more than 150 women ‘report’ molestation and rape. The next time someone tells you that India is a land that worships the female form, all you need to do is snigger and laugh. Don't worry, we are just like that.

The Sunday Indian