Trigger Warning: Rape, Rape Culture
Every day when we read newspapers, we see rape cases occupying the corner space of the newspaper and ignore them saying “yeh toh hota hi hai” (This happens all the time).
A few weeks ago, the Hathras incidents made newspaper headlines and now we see that it has disappeared. Politicians bring up these cases not to demand justice but to allege their opposition. Sometimes, it does turn out to be useful and bring justice to the victim and others remain unnoticed and justice becomes a dream for them.
I’m reminded of a misogynistic and absurd comment made by our politicians on Hathras incident, something on the lines of how ‘this kind of girls can only be found in the jungle areas or behind the bushes’. Do you think this is extreme? Then hear what West Bengal TMC MP Kakoli Ghose Dhastidar had to say. He said, “It was a misunderstanding in professional dealing between the lady and her client” to ruled out the remarks of rape. How can a woman say this to a rape survivor?
Rape and Religion have always been tools in this big political game. Even the politicians know this well that’s why some say it “fake news” and some says ” shajno Ghotona” ( political conspiracy) to avoid the allegations of rape cases.
Now the question is do we really want a change? Do we want to come together and demand justice for every survivor irrespective of their caste, class, religion and place? Or does it remain the same where news headlines change overnight and demand for justice wanes?