Heinous, bestial, animals, savagery are the words one usually associates whenever one stumbles across something as gruesome as the Delhi bus rape or the recent Hyderabad rape-murder. We get outraged for some time, call for death to the perpetrators and then forget everything, only to get outraged again when the next perverted crime comes to light. There is jubilation on one side if there is a death verdict and gloom in the camp for whom all life is sacred.
Yet, despite all our fervent wishes, rape is something that cannot be completely eradicated. In psychological terms, it is first and foremost a display of power, a display of the criminal’s might. This is something that cannot be completely eradicated. There are perpetrators from both sexes, and surviving is not easy for any of them. But in India, one can say the survivors are the unlucky ones, the dead luckier.
Why have things deteriorated to this extent? Rape is something not unique to any country. However, the laws and the law and order machinery set-up in India is still stuck in the 1940s. The harsh truth is that rapes cannot be stopped, but the aftermath can certainly be made faster and much less painful to all parties.
First, let us start with the laws. The Delhi rape saw some changes, but there is still much to be done. And in some cases, the cure may be worse than death. With the sword of death hanging on their heads anyway, the assailant may very well murder the victim as punishment for both is same. What is needed is overhauling of the police laws and bring Indian police into the post-2001 world.
While there is a cell to handle crimes against women, there is no separate cell to take care of sexual offences. In the first hours, what the traumatised victim needs is someone who knows how to communicate properly with someone who has suffered such an ordeal. This is a specialised job which needs training. The law and order machinery is already overburdened and heavily politicised. This develops a tendency to push matters ‘under the rug.’ Plus, those at the bottom of the pecking order are on duty almost 24x7, thus almost always unhealthy, irritable and fast becoming careless and prone to ‘enticement.’ In short, not quite the ideal person for such a sensitive task.
Also, there is the thorny question of jurisdictions. In the Hyderabad case, when the victim’s sister approached the police, she was told the area was not under their jurisdiction. What should take precedence if a crime is in progress? The jurisdiction or need to take swift action?
There is a provision in law for ‘Zero FIR’ which means when a complainant approaches the nearest police station, the police must register the case irrespective of territorial jurisdiction. That case will not be added in the police station’s crime statistics and they will transfer the case to the police station concerned as they know better about the jurisdiction issue than any complainant.
Former Times of London’s Anatol Lieven notes in his book, ‘Pakistan a hard country’ that one reason people’s preference for the Taliban courts was speedy verdicts. In India, it is an old joke that the case’s verdict will come when the grandsons/granddaughters of both the parties have passed away.
Imagine reliving the same trauma over and over for many years. It is clear why so many cases go unreported. On the other hand, it is also imperative that such laws are not misused to settle scores.
Now comes the final, and the most dissected and criticised factor: societal set-up. For a society with a whole array of fierce women gods and warriors, many of us retain a sexist attitude. Thus, a woman survivor is shamed by the hoary old cliché of ‘izzat lut gayi’, and a male survivor is laughed at and is asked why he is creating a hullabaloo when he got ‘it’ for free. Unfortunately, in the case of male survivors, the derision is universal.
This brings us to our next obstacle: attitude about sex. Sex education is still a topic deeply frowned upon. The availability of expendable data and availability of free pornography, coupled with illiteracy/backwards mentality, results in such ghastly deeds.
Reform for the last obstacle is lengthy and we may see concrete results after a long time. But some remedies such as law and order revamp will go a long way in ensuring the process gets shorter and humane.
(With inputs from Mubarak Ansari)
