President Droupadi Murmu – in her first public statement on the rape and murder of a doctor at Kolkata’s RG Kar Hospital nearly 20 days ago – declared herself “dismayed and horrified”.
She red-flagged “the objectification of women by a few… (this behaviour) is deeply ingrained in such people” and ripped into a “deplorable mindset… that sees the female as a ‘lesser human being’… ‘less powerful’ … and ‘less intelligent’… and as an ‘object'”.
“What is more depressing is that it (the Kolkata killing) was not the only incident of its kind… it was part of a series of crimes against women,” she said in a signed statement shared with news agency PTI, criticising the “obnoxious collective amnesia” that much of this country develops and which allows women to be harassed, assaulted, and brutalised on a daily basis.
“Enough is enough. No civilised society can allow daughters and sisters to be subjected to such atrocities,” she said, “In 12 years since Nirbhaya (the gangrape and murder of a Delhi woman in 2012), countless rapes have been forgotten… this ‘collective amnesia’ is obnoxious.”
“In December 2012… there was shock and rage. We were determined not to let another Nirbhaya meet the same fate. We made plans. These initiatives did make a difference to an extent… but our task remains unfinished as long as any woman feels unsafe…” she said.
“In the 12 years since… there have been countless tragedies, though only a few drew nationwide attention. Even these were soon forgotten. Did we learn our lesson?” the President asked, lamenting the fact that each was buried and forgotten after a few weeks of protest.
“This collective amnesia is as obnoxious as that mindset I spoke of…”
READ | “Enough!”: President On Kolkata Horror, Crimes Against Women
“Only societies scared to face history resort to collective amnesia… India must face history squarely. Let us deal with this perversion comprehensively… to curb it right at the beginning.”
Ms Murmu also red-flagged (indirectly) other recent horrific incidents of violent crime against women, including the rape of nurses in Uttarakhand and Maharashtra, and the raft of sexual assault allegations against actors and directors in the Malayalam film industry.
“… even as students, doctors, and citizens were protesting in Kolkata, criminals remained on prowl elsewhere.. The recent spate of crimes should force honest self-introspection…”
The killing of a young doctor at the Kolkata hospital – her body was discovered early August 9 and post-mortem reports confirmed barbarous injuries to her legs, hands, and genitals – triggered furious protests from healthcare workers and civil society activists nationwide.
It also triggered a political squabble between Bengal’s ruling Trinamool and the opposition BJP, with even Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s ‘on-paper’ ally, the Congress, launching attacks.
The Trinamool and the BJP exchanged letters; Ms Banerjee demanded tougher laws for women’s safety but the centre pointed out she had not implemented schemes to deal with such crimes.
READ | Centre Replies To Mamata’s Letter To PM After Kolkata Rape-Murder
In the back and forth between political parties and governments on the RG Kar Hospital killing, many other incidents of harassment and rape made headlines and, as the President lamented, petered away into that “collective amnesia”, including a horrible incident from Rajasthan, in which a woman was tied to a motorcycle and dragged across rubble and rocky ground. Her crime – wanting to visit her sister.
READ | Rajasthan Woman Dragged By Husband Behind Bike As “Punishment”
There have also been a shocking flood of allegations against Malayalam actors and filmmakers prompted by the release of the Justice Hema Committee report last week.
READ | Mollywood #MeToo: 17 Cases So Far, Actor Flags Threats After Speaking
The report was submitted in 2019 but its release was delayed amid legal challenges.
The Supreme Court, meanwhile, took suo moto cognisance of the Kolkata rape and murder case, and has held two hearings so far, in which it warned the centre and state against politicising the issue.
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