*Trigger Warning*
Remembering Nirbhaya
A girl was living her in her own world, walking around care-free, lost in the joys of friendship. Little did she know that this freedom and these joys were meant to end forever.
She walked out of the cinema, spirited, with her friend; neither one of them noticing any harbingers of inhumanity lurking around. They took a bus from the theatre to reach home safely to the bosom of their families, but the bus ride took a brutal turn. She was raped by not just one, not just two, not just three, but six people. An iron rod was inserted into her vagina, and that too repeatedly, simply because of the fact that she tried to rescue her friend from being battered by the rapists and goons. I often feel like those demons literally pulled the spirit out of her (and not just her intestines). The story doesn’t end here.
Their thirst wasn’t pacified yet. Both the unfortunate victims were stripped and tossed off the bus. Efforts were made for them to be smashed under the bus, albeit they proved futile. They lay naked on the roadside for hours, which must have seemed like decades to them, with nobody to listen to their cries of pain and anguish, let alone preserve their honour and dignity.
“I want to live”, she said on her death bed, oblivious to the fact that it doesn’t bring life into being. She battled for her life. Her struggle that lasted two weeks brought about changes in anti-rape laws, the conviction of all those who were accused and an amendment to traffic rules. But, questions about the conscience, morality and humanity of the rapists remain; how can someone be so inhuman, barbarous and cold?
Why is ‘she’ objectified and not treated as an ordinary human being? Why does it become so hard preserving her dignity? We often conclude our discussions with recommendations that women need to be independent and bold and should learn self – defence and the like. Right? I beg to differ and put forth that this girl would have suffered (any girl, for that matter) despite all this.
Now what? Yes, these acts and measures might help in battling the atrocities such asof rape, but do they prevent them? No. We need to prevent rape, and these acts of self-defence do not ensure anything. I firmly believe, the only solution is to change mindsets. There needs to be a revolution of thought on how we perceive women – what do they represent in society, why are we reducing them to mere objects to fulfil carnal instincts. Until the litter of the corrupted brains is not swiped, nothing is going to change. Absolutely nothing.
“Let her live in the palace of her dreams, let her fly to the eternal heights of sky, let her breath the air of liberation!” – Shirpa Thakur