Rape country?
"India is my country and all Indians are my brothers and sisters. I love my country and am proud of its heritage....." This has been a pledge we have all taken in school. Sadly, recent events have shown how few Indians actually believe in this pledge.
We have seen such ghastly acts of rape in recent days, that as an Indian my head hangs in shame. Perpetrators of the most gruesome crimes against children and women walk free and escape imprisonment on flimsy grounds. How can I be proud of my country where women and children are constantly living in fear?
And more appalling is the polarization of people on religious and political grounds, and worse, their justification of such inhuman incidents with "When such an incident happened before, why were such protests not organized?" or "It is a conspiracy to malign our great country."
Like really? What great country? If such incidents of rape, acid attack, sodomy, child abuse, incest take place on a regular, sickening basis, so often that we have become immune to them, then why should I consider my country as great? Where educated civilized people bring out their inner barbarians and justify such acts with this and this excuse, then what should I be proud of?
Cynics shake their heads and say that such things happen in every country; but I don't agree. If we call ourselves civilized and educated, how can we let such heinous crimes go unpunished? How do people forget such incidents after a month of fervent posting on Facebook and dutifully attending candle-light marches? Why do we let the criminals get away with all this? If the administration fails to deliver justice in Nirbhaya case or Nithari case, or Park Street or Kamala Mills case, why doesn't our society put pressure on them?
As civilized citizens of this ancient country, our duty doesn't end with sporadic sloganeering and social media protests. We need to take more concrete steps to make sure these incidents like Kathua, Unnao, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Muzzafarpur, Surat, any district or city, DON'T HAPPEN AGAIN.
Why don't leaders and trailblazers from each field condemn such acts? Why don't IAS, IPS officers and lawyers pursue these cases? Why does the press abandon responsibility to keep the public memory of these incidents alive? Why don't film actors, cricketers, politicians, businessmen, religious gurus, any one who is revered and worshipped in this country, raise voices against such inhumanity?
Because we all feel that if it has not happened in my backyard, it is none of my business. And that feeling of insulated security is all that we Indians gloat in. The "us" and "them" divide that prevents us from feeling each other's pain or misery is at the root of all of this country's evils. Until it happens to us and our kin, we simply don't care.
Let us show the world we care. As Indians and as citizens of the world, let us dig deep into our hearts and conscience to shout "No More!" We have tolerated enough. All of us who call ourselves educated and respectable citizens, have a moral duty towards our forthcoming generations to remove this shame from our country's name.
We have seen such ghastly acts of rape in recent days, that as an Indian my head hangs in shame. Perpetrators of the most gruesome crimes against children and women walk free and escape imprisonment on flimsy grounds. How can I be proud of my country where women and children are constantly living in fear?
And more appalling is the polarization of people on religious and political grounds, and worse, their justification of such inhuman incidents with "When such an incident happened before, why were such protests not organized?" or "It is a conspiracy to malign our great country."
Like really? What great country? If such incidents of rape, acid attack, sodomy, child abuse, incest take place on a regular, sickening basis, so often that we have become immune to them, then why should I consider my country as great? Where educated civilized people bring out their inner barbarians and justify such acts with this and this excuse, then what should I be proud of?
Cynics shake their heads and say that such things happen in every country; but I don't agree. If we call ourselves civilized and educated, how can we let such heinous crimes go unpunished? How do people forget such incidents after a month of fervent posting on Facebook and dutifully attending candle-light marches? Why do we let the criminals get away with all this? If the administration fails to deliver justice in Nirbhaya case or Nithari case, or Park Street or Kamala Mills case, why doesn't our society put pressure on them?
As civilized citizens of this ancient country, our duty doesn't end with sporadic sloganeering and social media protests. We need to take more concrete steps to make sure these incidents like Kathua, Unnao, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Muzzafarpur, Surat, any district or city, DON'T HAPPEN AGAIN.
Why don't leaders and trailblazers from each field condemn such acts? Why don't IAS, IPS officers and lawyers pursue these cases? Why does the press abandon responsibility to keep the public memory of these incidents alive? Why don't film actors, cricketers, politicians, businessmen, religious gurus, any one who is revered and worshipped in this country, raise voices against such inhumanity?
Because we all feel that if it has not happened in my backyard, it is none of my business. And that feeling of insulated security is all that we Indians gloat in. The "us" and "them" divide that prevents us from feeling each other's pain or misery is at the root of all of this country's evils. Until it happens to us and our kin, we simply don't care.
Let us show the world we care. As Indians and as citizens of the world, let us dig deep into our hearts and conscience to shout "No More!" We have tolerated enough. All of us who call ourselves educated and respectable citizens, have a moral duty towards our forthcoming generations to remove this shame from our country's name.
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