Not women's safety but politics takes centre stage in Punjab

The tragic death, aptly a murder, of the minor girl at the hands of molesters who threw her off a moving bus in Punjab’s Moga, is a shrill reminder of the rot that exists not just in the state but in the country.

Unlike the Nirbhaya incident in the national capital, when public outcry spilled on to the streets of New Delhi in 2012, the ‘inflammable’ ingredient in the Moga bus tragedy, unfortunately, was not the 13-year old girl who lost her life. It was the fact that the bus belonged to the Badal family which has been ruling Punjab now for nearly eight years. While Parkash Singh Badal is the chief minister, his son Sukhbir is the Deputy CM. Sukhbir’s wife, Harsimrat, is a minister at the Centre.

Had it not been the Orbit Aviation bus owned by Punjab’s ruling family, the molestation and murder case of the teenaged girl would have arguably lost both its ‘orbit’ and potency, and even the pace at which such horrendous incident need to be dealt with. The public outcry was essentially limited to representatives of political parties of the Congress and the greenhorn AAP. The real public, like what the nation saw in the Nirbhaya case, was presumably missing, or narrowed down to mere criticism of the incident.

But this incident, where one life was lost on the streets of Punjab, has brought the spotlight on the business of the Badal family. It was not the kind of incidents of government malfunction that the Badals could have held someone accountable for, or looked for a scapegoat. The guns were trained at them, and this time, they were in the direct, ‘inescapable’ line of fire. 

It took four days for a member of the ruling family to visit the house of the victim in Moga. That could be argued by the family on the lines that there were far too many Badal-baiters and opposition leaders playing spoilsport in an hour of grief. Yes, there were political leaders who, perhaps, would have wanted mileage out of the episode. But amid all the din and political overtones, the core issue of women’s safety beyond just in public transport, was underlined, yet again.
 
The negative focus on the business of the Badals has inflicted enough damage. The Badal family owns a fleet of air-conditioned buses in Punjab, which is among many of the business ventures – from media to hospitality to aviation and more – that the family runs.

Reports of a “free-hand” to buses of Orbit Aviation Private Limited and improper conduct of bus staffers have been widespread. Even on key routes, the government buses have been non-viable as they are pitted against buses of the Badal family that make huge profits on these routes.

The Moga incident expectedly provided fodder for the opposition parties, especially the troubled Congress and the AAP, who were quick to realise how potent the issue could be with the ‘Badal ownership tag’ to it. As developments unfolded, politics played out, even though the ‘mission’ to stem the rot – holding the Badals accountable – became the face of the agitation.

Complex demands – some like Rs 2 crore compensation to the next of kin, a case against Sukhbir, drawing comparisons with the Uphaar fire tragedy and Delhi Uber cab rape – added to the complexity of the matter. The incident has galvanised the opposition ahead of the Assembly polls in early 2017.  

The teenaged girl, along with her mother, was pushed off the moving bus late last Wednesday after both resisted molestation at the hands of the bus staffers. The girl lay in a poll of blood as she died upon impact falling on the highway. Her 36-year old mother was left seriously injured. The police have arrested all four accused, three of them staffers of Orbit. A stalemate occurred after the family refused to cremate their daughter until a case was registered against the owners of the bus. This was only the beginning of what eventually played out.

The Badal buses, after the incident, moved with police protection amid fears of they being burnt by political protesters. The decision by Sukhbir to suspend the movement of hundreds of his buses led to the beginning of the climb down by the family, which until late Sunday had been adamant on a case against the owner of the bus.

Sudden and curious changes
But things started to change suddenly and curiously. The family accepted Badal’s Orbit company cheque of Rs 24 lakh compensation on Sunday. A government job for a family member has been assured. Four nights after her death, Arshdeep’s mortal remains were put on the pyre for cremation, perhaps in sudden haste, past 8 pm on Sunday. The Badals have for now packed up the operation of the buses, at least until all its staffers undergo a mandatory orientation course on how to be civil. A high level committee was constituted Monday afternoon to recommend measures for women’s safety on board all buses in Punjab.

The Moga incident encountered by the ruling Akali Dal comes at a bad time. The government has been drawing flak over tardy wheat procurement and payment to farmers this season. Last week’s visit of Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi to Punjab brought the nation’s attention to the state’s grain markets where lakhs of gunny bags stacked with wheat lay in the open awaiting procurement.

The Moga issue has apparently been resolved. There aren’t many now protesting against the government outside the victim’s house. The family says “it’s satisfied.” The victim’s father Sukhdev Singh, flanked by his lone son, posed with CM Badal on Sunday.