It is an incident of the time when I was in eighth semester of my engineering. I was returning back to my hostel by college bus. After attending five back to back theory classes of 1 hour each and one practical session of two hour (in which one has to constantly remain in standing position, listening to the stringent cacophony of the continuously running machines in the electrical machine laboratory, performing the practical and breathing the air filled with awful smell of the burnt rubber ), getting tired and feeling sleepy in the bus on the way back from college is not a surprising or uncommon matter for the technocrats. On that day also, I was in half sleepy mode when a conversation of my friends going on in the back seat woke me up from my sleep.
Priyanka (name changed) was talking about the Delhi Gang Rape Case with her friend. What she said shook my thoughts from the very bottom and I was forced to introspect many issues. Her statement was “ She (Nirbhaya) must have intentionally boarded the empty bus so that she could do some sex sort of stuff with her boyfriend and when that group of boys saw them(her and her guy friend) doing some dirty stuff, they must have got aroused and then they raped her. As boys’ mentality cannot change and they are quite short tempered, girls should behave themselves. They should not do anything which might offend the boys. Why was she roaming that late at night with her boyfriend? In other words, she would have been a slut. She got punished for her own fault.”
Then my stop came and I had to descend but her words kept banging in my head and I was compelled to draw some conclusions from her opinion.
Firstly, one should not speak anything about anyone’s character until and unless he/she has himself/herself gone to the root of the truth or has witnessed it with his own ocular.
Secondly, a question arises, has or has not our education system been successful in educating the young minds so far? It’s a contentious issue. Had it been successful, this statement would not have come from a 22 yr old final year Engineering “GIRL”. Is our education system incepting this downtrodden and backward mentality in its youngsters? Or is it a consequence of living in a patriarchal society that she developed this patriarchal thinking being a daughter, a sister and a female herself ? Priyanka only knows.
Thirdly, this statement might be evincing the vulnerability, apprehension and insecurity of a typical Indian girl and her parents, probably. Presumably, by giving this kind of opinion or say by cooking an alibi, she is distancing herself from that case. By blaming Nirbhaya, she is giving herself assurance that rape will never happen with her (God forbid. It should not happen with anyone.) as she will never go out late at night with her guy friend. She is finding some traits which Nirbhaya possessed and she doesn’t so that she could allay her fear and feel herself to be safe.
Fourthly, it is also possible that she spoke what her parents and neighbors discussed with her. May be, it’s her parents’ or our elder generations’ ( on generalization ) thinking. If this statement emanates from the parents’ of a daughter, then it is really saddening and shameful at the same time. Again, has our youth become so dumb and illogical that they have started accepting their parents’ view without checking its veracity? Where has their dynamism gone? Well, this also depends on the upbringing of the child. May be, some people are so rigid that they do not want to change their mentality even after getting all forms of exposures.
And lastly, what Priyanka said that Nirbhaya got punished for her own fault. I would like to ask not only Priyanka but all those retrograde people who always blame the rape victim for her fate, “Had she been returning from her job or IIT-JEE coaching classes or hospital with her colleagues / brother/ father, would those beasts have not committed that heinous crime on that dreadful night? ” Answer is, Yes they would have because they were perverts. Had she been a girl of 10 year old or an old lady of 70 year, then also they would have raped her.
Nirbhaya and all girls are born in a free country like India. They have got every right to enjoy their life. No one has got any right to punish anyone for his/her enjoyment as long as he/she does not harm others. Those beasts had no right to defile the body of that brave girl. This applies to all the rape accused and rape victims. I am not a bloody feminist. I am an Equalist. Neither I am anti man nor I am pro woman. Not all men are bad. All girls are not good either. I agree. What I reckon is “Rape can never be justified on any ground”. Treat all female at par with males. If you want to take vengeance from a girl, treat her in the same way as you would have treated her, if she were a boy.
I am not against the education system or political system or the society of this country as I am a proud part of the same. However, things must have to be changed for betterment. Don’t spread polluting thoughts. What is required is self introspection and purgation of thoughts and change of vision. The development of our nation will be hindered if this kind of mentality prevails in the mind of the upcoming demographic dividend.
My notion is just this, Respect each and every creation of God and the almighty will reward you in his own way in the most unexpected manner.
“Live and Let live”
Stay Happy. Stay Blessed.
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