On the Guwahati Incident

Its been bothering me since I heard about it. The Guwahati incident, there are 3 aspects of it that bother me to no end, one the journalist, two the clothes and time argument and third the incident itself.

The Journalist – I haven’t seen the full footage. I don’t want to but I know it was for a full 30 minutes. What I have seen is a 3 minute shot and it was enough to make me angry and cry at the same time. What I can’t understand is why the journalist thought it was more important to shoot the video rather than help her. People present arguments that he was alone, he called the police, and if he hadn’t shot it, we wouldn’t have known about it. Really? Did we really need to see that, or was it more important to prevent it. This isn’t the first time a journalist has stood and shot an incident. Yes, you were not a participant but have you thought that you could have made a difference by helping her, by fighting those jerks? I don’t know how you sleep at night. Now, there are reports that you instigated the whole thing just because she refused some advances from you. Bravo! I hope you rot in hell if that’s true. If its not true, you still deserve hell, because you just stood and shot. Ever heard of the statement – the perpetrator of crime is a criminal, and the bystander who just watches and let it happen is also a criminal? That’s what you are. It was more important for you to sell that footage than help that girl.

Clothes and Time Argument – It’s the most common argument isn’t it, everytime a girl is raped, or molested, there are these voices – it must be her clothes, what was she doing alone at that time, she was asking for it. Well, for all those voices, I have some questions –

1. Are you a woman?
2. Have you ever travelled in a public bus or any means of public transport by any chance at any time of the day or night?
3. Have you seen what is the attire worn by most women travelling by public transport? Atleast in Pune, most wear salwar-suits.
4. Have you seen where men stand in buses mostly? In Pune, the left side of the bus is reserved for ladies, but you will see men sitting there, or atleast standing on that side only with their genitals rubbing a lady’s shoulder. The more the lady leans inward, the more he leans on her. When it comes to seats, most men will never occupy an empty seat next to a man, but will sit next to a woman. Oh, and this shit happens anytime you travel in a bus – any time of the day, noon, evening or night, no matter how crowded or how empty the bus.
5. Have you ever experienced this shit – You are standing in a bus and its crowded and a man gropes you/ a man rubs himself against you? And this too happens anytime you travel in a crowded bus. Any time of the day, noon, evening or night, any season, any month.
6. Have you seen girls living in a slum of 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 years of age? Yes, they are the ones who get raped every other day. Do they dress obscenely or are promiscuous?
7. Have you ever walked on a road and been honked at by passing cars and bikes or heard lewd comments, or been offered a lift even when its 11 in the morning and you are wearing a salwar suit?

 If after answering these questions, you still feel that clothes or a particular hour are in any way to be blamed for a sexual crime, then either you are blind or an idiot!

The Incident – A class XI student, dressed decently is molested by 20 men who are very much older than her 16-17 years of age, who are most likely married and most definitely have mothers and sisters. This happens on the road for 30 minutes because she is alone and was in a bar. First, if they wanted to act as moral police, where is the morality in their actions, when they grope her, pull her hair and remove her clothes? Second, who the hell are they to act the moral police in the first place? Are they jealous that they couldn’t go to that bar and she could or that she can celebrate her birthday in a bar and they can’t? Who the hell gave them the right to do this? If they have that right, we have the right to castrate them and pull them apart the way they pulled her and pull them till their limbs get torn. This apathetic country with its pathetic judicial system will do nothing for that girl as it has done nothing for countless such girls who have been first been victims of painful crimes and then subjected to endless humiliation and voyeurism in the name of journalism and whatever shit.

 I just have one question for everyone in this country, how long will you let this happen?

When will you take a stand and prevent something like this from happening or make it such a wretched crime that forget 20, even 1 man doesn’t have the courage to smile again and hurt a girl?

Some of the Guwahati Criminals