Two years after India was shaken by the gang rape and murder of a young Medical student on a Delhi bus, it has been compared with the Rochdale Sex Grooming cases, which had almost 373 victims, including 50 boys. The defence lawyer Michael Magarian, QC, suggested the girls abused in Banbury, Oxfordshire, only reported the crimes so they would not have to take responsibility for having underage sex.
Nine months after the Nirbhaya gang rape, Bollywood actress Kalki Koechlin made a satirical video called 'Rape: It's your fault'. In that few mins video, the actress ridiculed the pervasive patriarchal attitudes, expressed openly by public figures- that blamed urban women and their conduct for the increasing rate of violence against them.
Leslee Udwin's film India's daughter, showed perpetrator Mukesh Singh giving an account of the horrific rape event without showing remorse or feeling as though he was at fault. On the contrary, he went on to blame the victim for not being a “good girl” for roaming the streets after 9pm with a boy. Additionally, an interview by the lawyer who represented the rapists in court, AP Singh also featured in this film who had previously stated that if his sister or daughter were to engage in pre-marital sex, he would drench them in petrol and set them aflame as their activities would bring shame upon him and the family.
New Delhi has slammed the film as a conspiracy to malign the country and damage its international reputation. Home Minister Rajnath Singh criticised this film in Parliament and is against using this case for commercial profits. Singh further that Udwin breached the terms of agreement as she had not shown the jail officials the unedited footage which she had filmed in the prison.
Indians living around the world, have watched the documentary, and most of them strongly believe that banning it in India is absolutely unacceptable. In a survey by Asian Voice, we received overwhelming responses from women and men all across the globe, including Singapore, India, US and Britain from all walks of life.
Labour MP Valerie Vaz stated, “The film should be shown in India. It showed a responsive police force and a justice system that brought the perpetrators to justice. It brought home the pain of her parents, the brutality of rape and the loss to India of an empowered woman.”
Women's Minister, Seema Malhotra shared that the film depicts “men and women alike must take a stand and it is right that India, now growing as a world economic player, tackles these difficult social issues with confidence. But changing a culture which has all too often seen the perpetrators excused and the woman blamed for what has happened will be a long journey fraught with difficulty.”
Reading based lawyer Megha Mittal told Asian Voice, “Most men in power in India are narrow minded. If they are ashamed, they should do something about the situation in India and not raise issues with the film. Why didn't they ban Slumdog Millionaire which painted India as a slum and a poor country. Did that boost tourism in the country?”
London based author Laxmi Hariharan said, “They (Indian government) are not right to say that the documentary could be misconstrued as giving a platform to the rapists.... Do they trust people so little in terms of distinguishing between what's right and wrong? What haunts me most is the face of the girl's mother - She has to live the rest of her life, with the knowledge of what happened to her daughter... I think of a worse fate. The documentary itself is chilling but banning it has simply put the world spotlight on it now.”
Educationalist, Supriyo Chaudhuri told Asian Voice, “The government has a position just like Mukesh Singh, as interviewed in the documentary. If rape has happened, just be quiet about it. If only we can own it up collectively, there is hope that such attitudes will change. The government is in denial, as usual.”
Banker Vishu Kumar said, “It should definitely be aired in India. People who have the means will watch it on the internet anyways. It's the less fortunate people who would not get to witness a prime example the impact that someone's upbringing can have on their mindset. I don't know the real reasons why it was objected. If it's anything to do with bad publicity/effect on tourism, then the officials need a wake up call...”
Baroness Flather stated, "I have been appalled by the decision of the Indian Government to ban the documentary India's Daughter. I would have thought that this is something which should be shown to as many people, specially young people, as possible. It is imperative that women realise how dreadful and unacceptable the attitude of the men is to them. That women still count for nothing in India and a girl has no right to have a life other than being sheltered by husband, father or brother."
However, US based Krishnakali Dasgupta shared a different view. She believes the documentary is not fit to be showed on television as it does not comply to the terms of what a documentary should be like. Further on, she believes the film “does not live up to the expectations of the enormity of the case and is not worthy of being aired by a national channel since it was not even a worthy enough tribute to Nirbhaya.”
Dasgupta agreed with the objections made by the Indian Government. “The makers clearly have not cared for following any legal rules. As Kavita Krishnan's letter says, there is limits to freedom of speech, how can any legal government give its official sanction to classified material of an ongoing case? I would be surprised if they did.”
To that London based Journalist Lopa Patel added, “Indian government's objection is valid on the grounds that it is giving publicity to a convicted murderer.” She went on to say, “But Mukesh Singh is a misogynistic, immoral, souless rapist and murderer and that is worth airing. The documentary was balanced and did not glamourise them in any way.”
While most may have disagreed with Dasgupta's points and believed that the documentary should have been aired and found the Indian government's objections questionable, all the interviewees have agreed that inspite of the rapid economic growth, and fast moving urbanization, India remains a largely unsafe country for women.
But is safety and men- the only things we need to fear for in India? Ending with a striking interview of Akshay Thakur's wife, the film has opened doors to many more questions about our society. While most family members of the perpetrators seemed sad, Puneeta Devi sat on a doorstep with her young son, flared into anger “Am I not a daughter of this country?” she said. “Don’t I have a right to live? Will there be no more rapes in Delhi? Will you hang all rapists? A woman is protected by her husband. If he’s dead, who will protect her and for whom will she live? I also don’t want to live. Priyanshu, my son, is a child. He understands nothing. I will strangle him to death. What else can I do?”
==========
Was Nirbhaya really India’s daughter?
Spriha Srivastava
The answer is no. While lots of people protested and have been outraged over what happened to her, a huge section still has views that are shameful. The documentary by BBC, titled India’s Daughter, has thrown a number of questions in front of everyone. Do we respect our women? Who do we blame when a crime against a woman is committed? Are we a nation that believes in gender equality?
While a lot of questions remain unanswered, a lot of opinions have also come to light with this documentary, probably the reason the film is banned in India now? The film looks at the way different people think – a rapist, a lawyer, the family of the victim, the family of the convicted and so on. But what it also shows is the way India treats its women – the country with the highest young population.
I decided to ask young women how safe they feel going to India especially after this incident? The answer wasn’t very encouraging.
“I have never been to India,” says 21-year old Amy, adding “but would really like to go sometime. I have read Indian mythological stories and it is so fascinating. But the only think that concerns me is women’s safety. If you go to a place you want to enjoy and be relaxed. My only concern is I will be constantly worried about being safe.”
Another similar view came from Maya, a 35-year old French language teacher in the UK – “I want to go, yes! But what about my safety? When I read stories I get scared and then postpone my plan. Maybe one day I will go.”
However, there are a few people who think a lot of this is giving too much negative publicity to India and things are not as bad.
“I have lived in India all my life and even though these incidents are an eye-opener for us, things are not as bad as it is portrayed,” says a 25-year old journalist in the city.
Things might not be as bad but they are bad enough to scare tourists off. I spoke to many friends who although have lived their entire life in India don’t feel as comfortable being out till late in Delhi as they do in other cities in India. So what is it that’s different in cities like Mumbai for instance as compared to Delhi? Women in both these cities are professional and go to work so it’s clearly something to do with law and order in these cities.
I am not saying Mumbai is the safest city in India – there have been many cases in Mumbai too but from the majority of women I spoke to I got a sense that they feel safer in Mumbai as compared to Delhi.
Keeping all that in the background, the brutal question still looming over our heads is when will the government wake up? When will they make rape laws more stringent? And when will people treating men and women equal? The incident has kept India and her citizens awake for a long time now but there still has been no strong response from the government on stringent punishments. The criminals from Nirbhaya case are still in prison despite the death penalty and one of them who was sent to juvenile home will be released in December this year.
Even after the Nirbhaya incident, many more rape cases have happened in India. This just goes on to show that there is still no stringent punishment that deters these young men to become rapists.
One can seriously hope that this incident is not forgotten like the many incidents in the past. I always feel that one rape incident in India brings out many opinions, comments, debates, blog posts, protests and promises from government but it all dies down until a next big crime is committed. In this case, one can only hope that Nirbhaya’s sacrifice and the voice of thousands of protesters does not go in vain.
PHOTOS TO FOLLOW
