JOIN USYet another 'International Women's Day', an occasion we so dedicatedly ascribe importance to, acknowledging the women leaders who have made mark in their respective fields and, in general, the women in our lives as a way of overcompensating for sins committed since time immemorial, has passed.
As we celebrated the existence and par excellence contributory achievements of women to society, which have been nothing but a boon to society, we should introspect and see whether women have actually been given their due by men, most of whom continue to believe that women are subservient to them.
The saturnine truth of celebrating this day is that nothing has palpably changed. While with every passing year, awareness about gender equality and respect for women should have increased, the truth is that people seem to reserve that one day to show their respect for women, and then go back to the old habits for the rest of the year.
I say what I say with so much conviction and cynicism because we know the figures of the gory crimes that occur against women and seem to multiply each successive year.
The most intolerable truth about these violations is that they mostly happen to destitute and poor women who don't have a whiff about the catena of laws and recourses that exist for their protection, benefit and upliftment.
Not a day goes by when one opens the newspaper and doesn't come across odious instances of rape, sexual assault, molestation, harassment and the like. What is more disillusioning is that after the dastardly and unforgivable Nirbhaya case, such crimes have actually increased.
Take, for instance, the latest case where, in the hustle bustle of a Delhi market three days before Holi, a man aimed and threw a semen-filled balloon at a woman in a moving autorickshaw. I applaud the girl for coming out and disclosing this ordeal of hers, which has provided impetus for other victims of such outrage to go public about these incidents and intimate the police authorities.
The State of Uttar Pradesh has failed abysmally in its duty to protect its women. Indicative of it are the rates of crimes committed against women, which had not shown any decline until 2015 and, worse, have actually risen since. Nor is the national capital, New Delhi, any stranger to crimes against women: there were over 19,000 cases registered under the head of crimes against women in Delhi itself; Uttar Pradesh registered almost 40,000 in 2016.
There is also a consistency that one can observe in the number of cases of assault on the modesty of women, rape and cruelty by husband – that consistency is in the rise of these crimes over the last decade.
Fast-track cases
We, as a society, must ensure that those who commit atrocities against women - the wife-beaters, molesters, rapists, and the like - do not escape the law and are brought to book forthwith. There needs to be a collective and concerted effort on the part of law enforcement authorities as well as the courts. All matters falling under laws against domestic violence, protection of children and their rights, etc., must be fast-tracked and disposed of within six months.
Importantly, the police must treat victims humanely and follow the protocol while dealing with them. My own personal experience with the police, some years ago when I went to report a crime, was a disgruntling one: they asked questions of a personal nature that were unwarranted and unconnected to the matter I reported to them.
If a literate, legally-aware, professional like me can be treated in such a way, is there hope that they would behave any better with impoverished and vulnerable women.
Worse, the police often tend to sit in judgement of a victim's character. They cannot recklessly cast aspersions and character-assassinate a woman just by peering down at the length of the skirt. These abhorrent attitudes and actions must stop. It is finally for the court to arrive at a decision on whether or not a woman's complaint has merit or not.
If we all collectively want something - in this case, gender equality, respect for women, and their safety and security - we need to start walking together towards the goal in a practical way.
Merely celebrating one day of the year as Women's Day will not help. Instead of celebrating such a day, it is more important to stand up and do our bit for women who are struggling to stand up for themselves.
(The writer is a Senior Advocate, Supreme Court)