Preity Zinta’s Complaint Against Ness Wadia And The Mockery Of Abuse

By Mayank Jain:

It was the semi-final match between Punjab and Chennai in the Indian Premier League when Ness Wadia allegedly abused and harassed Bollywood starlet Preity Zinta. Ness Wadia is the co-owner of Kings XI Punjab who was also reportedly involved with Zinta for a long period of 5 years before they fell out. The complaint has brought to light an oft ignored dimension in the lives of the celebrities: their objectification and the constant glare on them even in dire situations.

The complaint says she was molested by Wadia inside the Wankhede stadium as he tried to pull her hand and tried to abuse her. Preity Zinta has also claimed that after their breakup, Wadia harassed her often. The FIR has been registered against Wadia under multiple sections of IPC 354, 504, 506 and 509.

Meanwhile, Ness has denied the accusations completely as he said he was “shocked” and “dismayed”. He claims that “The allegations are totally false and baseless” and he referred to his shock by saying, “It is disgusting that she stoop to this level.”

The FIR has been registered and the police has begun examining the case to unearth facts and finally deliver the justice. However, the world doesn’t wait to judge and stereotype, especially when it comes to celebrities and well-known figures. The report of sexual violence, which is a heinous incident has already been classified on the Internet where some say it is a “publicity stunt” by the actress to save her “drowning career”.

On the other hand, the comments are flowing on Twitter which are not only derogatory to her right to seek protection as a woman but to other stars as well. While one Twitter user compared Preity’s actions to “Rakhi Sawant’s drama” implying that their actions are prompted out of the desire to stir a controversy, another Twitter user named Preity as the culprit for “doing bad movies” that annoyed Ness Wadia and he had to take “matters in his hand”.

Celebrities are placed on a pedestal too early and adulation along with fan worship follows but a report like this comes and society is out to pass their judgements on the character and intentions of those involved. Shiney Ahuja was judged in the public about the allegations of rape on his maid and it was the same with Rhea Chakraborty who made her debut in “Mere Dad Ki Maruti”; she was harassed in the lift of her own building which was guarded by two watchmen and there were enough people who termed it as a ‘popularity stunt’.

If it wasn’t enough to trivialize the issue of sexual violence, an account impersonating Ravindra Jadeja who is an all rounder of the Indian Cricket Team joined in with its tweets and attempted humour at the cost of the complaint. The tweets preach people to take a cue from this and “not mix business with love” and another one calls upon the match day and says that “Preity Zinta has given Ness the best B’day gift ever.” These tweets are embedded below:

Preity Zinta took to Facebook to vent out her frustration at the controversy that her complaint has generated and has asked people to give her privacy and support through the tough times. Here is her post on Facebook:

Sexual violence is a grave concern which manifests into many forms in the lives of women, be it rapes, harassment, verbal abuse, groping, indecent comments or gestures etc. Those in the pop culture industry are viewed as objects by society at large and their actions to fight back such incidents are reduced to ‘attempts at gaining popularity’.

It is to be noted that the charges haven’t been proved yet and the whole controversy may take a sharp U-turn from here but that’s for the police and authorities to uncover. Taking the matter in our hands and passing judgements on the victims of abuse is not a sign of a sensitive and supportive society.

Meanwhile, as per a tweet by Zoom, Ness Wadia has reportedly said that, “Preity Zinta is jealous of my new girlfriend”: 

UPDATE (17/6/2014): As per a report by NDTV, her lawyer has clarified that the complaint is not of sexual abuse or molestation. “We have not mentioned sexual molestation or even the word ‘molestation’ in the FIR,” her lawyer Hitesh Jain told NDTV.

To know more about this story and what I think, follow me on Twitter at @mayank1029