Shame on top Dumb Lenders!
What happened to: our President & Father figure? The PM our Chief executive? Soniaji, the all powerful party boss? Youth face Rahulji? Corruption-cure party leader Kejriwal ET all? Why the deadening silence from all quarters? Mutatis mutandis, what is said of rapists is applicable to such incidents in religions and church institutions.
James Kottoor
Shame, shame, triple shame on top echelons of the government of India, my country I want to be proud of. I am thinking of the dawn to dusk protest of Saturday, Dec. 22nd after days of stony silence from our political leaders. The youth of India on Raisina Hills were demanding justice for the rape victim in a moving bus in Delhi and I was viewing on TV the response they got.
It was the spectacle of the gathering of a distort and anguished children mostly college students of this vast family called India at the door steps of their great father figure, Pranab Mukerji, the president of India. Where else should children in a family rush to for protection and guidance in an hour of crisis? It was not a political protest but a peaceful gathering seeking words of comfort and reassurance that the government was with them to soothe their bleeding hearts, wounded honour and their souls afflicted with fear and starved of peace.
They were mostly women, from all political parties. “What father among you would hand his son/daughter a stone when he/she asked for bread? Or hand him/her a snake instead of a fish? Or hand him/her a scorpion if he/she asked for an egg?” asks the Bible. And what were they given? Lathi charges by rapid action force, grenade shells and water canons, but not a single word of comfort from the all wise father of the nation. Imagine even media men and their equipments installed for reporting were wrenched with water canons or damaged to prevent people seeing shameful things they were doing. Why did the President keep his mouth shut all along? If it was not an insult to his father figure and proper functioning in a democracy, what else was it?
Why PM Mum for days?
Let us move to the next one in command and control, our meek, soft spoken Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, father of three daughters. Did he set a better example? Why did he keep mum for days ever since the gruesome crime? He had at his beck and call the TV channels to speak to the crowd or address the nation. Instead he once again confirmed the American media criticism of being an underperforming PM. “India’s criminal justice system, riddled with incompetence, corruption and political meddling, seems unable to respond effectively,” New York Times wrote. In similar vein Los Angeles Times reported on thousands “breaching barricades and clashing with police over the brutal rape of a 23-year-old girl” at the Presidents residence.
Has he learned nothing from Obama his much admired counterpart? When catastrophes like hurricane or the crime of shooting of school kids struck his nation Obama was quick to connect with the public to answer questions, alley fears and to calm down people. He empathised with the people as one of them. Our nethas instead stay in ivory towers with no word of leadership to utter. Democracy is a talking shop and it is as good as dead if the top executive can’t talk and lead.
What about the party’s all powerful lady president Sonia Gandhi? For a comfort she at least visited privately the victim dying in the hospital. That is small consolation for the aggrieved young women out in the main metros of the nation seeking action, not promises or personal concern. A toothless sexual assault bill is gathering dust from 2006. Nothing has come out of the promises it made even after six years. Who needs repetition of such promises? Sonia is the top woman leader in the country. She is rated as one of the most powerful ladies in the world. Hasn’t she any concrete measures to protect the women folk of the nation? Rest assured, the whole world is seeing and rerating her.
Unlike the Anna Hazare movement the present one was a spontaneous out burst of the hurt feelings of the youthful women folk with none to lead. Thus they were proving to the hilt that democracy has come of age in India. These youngsters have realised that government is their business, not of few cronies who succeed to get elected, only to sit in parliament to draw fat salaries or loot the nation. People are masters in a democracy. Their will alone must be made to prevail. They have come to the conclusion they won’t get what they want and deserve from government unless they act on their own. We have a non-performing government because people at large are not speaking up or demanding what they deserve. The youth of the nation can’t any more be accused of that crime? What is great about the recent show is the growing strength of the weaker section of the youth. Nay these fairer sections in a male dominated society have come out in droves on the street to speak up.
Where’s Rahul, the Youth Face?
Let us move on and see what happened to our much idolized youth leader Rahul Gandhi, projected as the crown prince for 2014.Thinking sections of society thought and even prayed that he might jump into the fray at least to make his prospects bright. Was it not the best opportunity to prove to the nation and to the world that he is dead set to be the youthful leader of this nation? Yet why did he keep his mouth shut? He wasted such a golden opportunity when his mother put him technically in charge while she was away for treatment during the high tide of Anna Hazare movement. He seems to have wasted a better opportunity now to make hey when the sun shines. May be he is hamstrung by his advisors. If so they are to be blamed for his lack of performance. Then they must be replaced with a better team...
Finally I think of the many who should have spoken out instantly: the Home Minister, the CM of Delhi, leaders of various political parties, especially the much talked about head of AAP etc. Couldn’t Kejriwal and his team find any active participatory role as common citizens, not as leaders of a new political party in this “Rape-of-the-nation-movement” literally and figuratively? He could not be seen or heard any where. Or is the AAP concerned only with giving out scam exposes week after week and not cooperating actively with any and every movement, organised or spontaneous, out in the street to cleanse the nation? Is not the ubiquitous menace of rape of young working women in office and outside their concern as well? Meanwhile a blame game is on to fix the cause of a constable’s death on duty – a cardiac arrest or manhandling by thugs for which the police force apparently trying to imply or implicate the AAP, though medical report speaks of no external injury.
We are under Police Raj
The upshot of what is discussed above come to this: we are today ruled by a police raj which can think only with their lathies, bullets and muscle power, not their brain power. The police call the shots blindly to show they are busy, while the leaders in the top echelons pretend to see not and hear not. As a result they speak not and act not. When the police mess things up stray voices from the top come out to explain things away. Remember this police force has been sleeping and snoring when the horrendous crime was committed in a moving bus. When awaked the same police go berserk attacking the defenders of the raped victim instead of joining them. What a senseless tragic comedy are we witnessing?
As a result, are not rapists protected and promoted? It looks so because birds of the same feather or mentality stick together to rape, if not to plunder the nation. Think of MPs and MLs viewing pornography in the assembly or of the infamous Tiwari incident, refusing to give blood samples to prove or disprove paternity of an illicit child. Parties go further to give tickets to rapists and criminals. What is worse, we the stupid electorate vote for them knowingly and willingly and make them win. So aren’t we partly to blame for bringing upon ourselves this loathsome burden of shame? So at least those who participated in the protest march and those of us who support them should decide once and for all never to waste a vote for a known rapist.
Oust Rapist Nethas!
The clarion call has already gone out: “Oust Rapist Nethas.” All political parties are stinking with such Nethas. So they cannot speak strongly against rapists because they will be speaking against themselves. That shows why there were no political leaders in the crowd to defend the cause of security and freedom of movement any time, any where, any how in the country for the fair sections like their compatriots. What then are the very minimum expected of our political leaders to prove their determination to put a stop to this rot?
Cleansing, like charity, begins at home – with oneself, with one’s own home, one’s own party. Credibility demands it. Minimum required would be: 1. To take an exhaustive head count of all rapists in all parties and law enforcement agencies like constables, higher officials who rape the victim first before giving her any help for which she comes. 2. To name and shame them before the nation as a deterrent to those who try to join their ranks by hook or crook. It should include all sexual assailants no matter how exalted they are. 3 Enact laws to oust them from all parties and government organisations in three months time. This alone would prove the determination of our politicians.
What Punishment for Rapists?
What about the punishment for any one caught? 1. Do everything to ensure stringent, certain and speedy punishment in three months time. 2. Make minimum punishment, life imprisonment to make sure that he never rapes another girl or woman. 3 Impose physical or chemical castration as a sure deterrent. 4. Agree to discuss capital punishment as the last option to be considered. Personally I am for abolition of capital punishment for any crime and to see my country join the comity of civilized nations for reasons enumerated else where.
But there is everything going for castration especially for habitual rapists. Why? Rape inflicts an indelible scar for life on the physical person and good moral character of the victim. Only a similar scar on the offender will be commensurate with the heinous crime he has committed and act as a sure deterrent. If the government led by Congress party, with a respectable lady at its helm, is serious about regaining its lost credentials, it should immediately call for a special session of the parliament to discuss these and other points threadbare as demanded by Smt. Sushma Swaraj. It is not a question of which party she belongs to or which party has more rapist nethas. The discussion is not for scoring political brownie points. If the government is adamant not to heed to these legitimate demands, the only option left to the people is to vote it out at the next elections.
Not ashamed of being part of a nation branded as a gang of rapists? Even if others are not, I am terribly ashamed.. Why? Because in the words of actor Kamalahasan: “That bus in which the dastardly gang rape took place is my bus. That infamous great city where it happened is the capital of my country. That brave girl who suffered the beastly crime is my sister. Those rogues who perpetrated the detestable crime are my own brothers!” How then can I be proud of my country? With tears I hang my head in utter shame! Can any other mind set in us proud Indians, would be a be a better deterrent to put a stop to all kinds of rapes in India?
The writer can be contacted at: jkottoor@asianetindia.com
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