The Naked Truth

I wrote this almost exactly two years ago for my cousin’s blog. A lot has changed over these two years and yet some remain the same, and that’s the Naked Truth…

Eve teasing and rape are not indigenous to India or Delhi alone. Why is it then that every day when I turn on the news here in India, there is at least one case of sexual assault, eve teasing, or molestation? Are we the only country filled with a crazy bunch of perverted men? Obviously not. It happens everywhere. But the difference is that here, there is an absence of political will. The Police are the guardians of the Government and not of the public, and the society blames the victim for their ill fate. Passing new laws and bills is not enough. The implementation of that law is what matters. And sadly, our country lacks in that aspect, so you still have rapists roaming around freely with a privilege of complete impunity.

A 23-year-old medical student was mercilessly gang-raped in Delhi last December. She died. There was national outrage, there were debates and discussions, and there were widespread protests against the Government for its inefficiency. People were angry, sad, scared and shocked. In light of this horrific incident, a committee was set up to review and revise laws for sexual crime. This committee was headed by a former Chief Justice of India, Justice JS Verma. In just 29 days, they submitted a revolutionary report which recommended dramatic changes. It called for tougher laws and rougher punishments. There was hope. Then, the Government quickly passed a toothless ordinance rendering the efforts of the committee futile. In exactly 4 months, we now have another case of rape in Delhi, this time, an innocent 5-year-old. What happened in these past 4 months? Nothing. Female infanticide has been prevalent in India for years. Earlier, a girl child was looked upon as a burden and so was killed. Now, parents are scared to give birth to daughters in the fear of her getting molested and abused. Nothing has changed. And that’s the naked truth. Nothing happens. Nothing changes. I can quote experiences from my own life as a testament to that.

Once, my friends and I were waiting at a bus stand. A group of college boys got down from a bus and surrounded us around where we were sitting. They made indecent and flirtatious remarks. We kept quiet, we didn’t know what to do, and we didn’t want to make it worse. After a while, they left. The next day, my mother informed the police who usually stands near that bus stand about it. He said that he will make sure someone stands at the bus stands to avoid such events in the future. But did that happen? No. Another episode stands out in my mind. The institute I took driving lessons from, claimed that they would provide lady instructors for lady students. Later, I found out it was just a marketing ploy. All the driving instructors I had were men. One of them tried to feel me up during one of the driving classes. I immediately pushed his hand away. And oh, I was fully clothed! I was scared. We were alone in a car, and I didn’t want to meet with an accident! As soon as the lesson got over, I told my mom about it. She then spoke to a person in the administration about this. But all that happened was that that man never took classes for me. He still works there. I was disturbed for the next few days. But, I at least had a supportive parent to whom I could talk, I wonder how many other girls he has tried to touch and who have kept quiet.

In India, it’s commonplace for a girl to receive filthy glances of men, to attract crude comments on her body, to be hooted at and stared at. It wouldn’t matter if I were stark naked or fully clothed, I would still have some man staring at me. It all boils down to the fact that I’m a girl. I would attribute one of the reasons of sexual assault to the fact that our society is a patriarchal one. Men assume to have a right over women and their body. Women are treated as objects to satisfy the needs of men. The society encourages women being objectified in films and in real life. Our movies have women barely wearing anything dancing to songs with vulgar lyrics. Children are taken to such movies and encouraged to sing and dance along. They portray eve teasing as a justifiable manner to get a girl. In real life, victims of sexual assault are blamed, their parents, friends, horoscope, clothes are blamed. Everyone except the perpetrator is blamed. No one can freely come out and share their woes, because nothing happens. So, they quietly accustom themselves to deal with the pain.

When I hear of these gruesome incidents of rape and sexual violence, I feel helpless; I don’t know how I can help to make it better. I feel powerless, unprotected and vulnerable. Every time I step out of the house, alone or otherwise, I feel conscious and scared. And I’m supposed to be living in the world’s largest democracy. A democracy that gives anyone the right to invade my body. I am just an ordinary Indian girl who lives in the hope that something happens, something changes and that one day, I can walk freely in my own country.