The Justice Verma Committee is out.
It has many recommendations but sends a positive vibe. The recommendations put
forth are noteworthy and seems to have a solid base and worth implementing. Now
the big question is – when and how. Many must have been disappointed to see the
Committee does not want death penalty or chemical castration for rapists. Yet,
it does put forward relevant observations.
Assaults against women are on a
rise and everyday, one gets to hear reports of molestations, gangrape, murder
and other atrocities committed against females. I cannot write ‘women’ here because
many victims are children, as young as two. What should be done to stop these
heinous crimes? Scores of committees, thousands of law and their sub sections
won’t prove a deterrent. They might if there is speedy justice and harsh
punishment. When will that happen? No one knows.
If one has to probe the reasons
behind increasing atrocities against women, then she won’t have to go that far.
There is only reason – the show of power. The assaulter is well aware that his
victim will not be able to defend herself. Will he dare attack someone who
might be bigger and stronger than him? He won’t. He has been brought up with
the thinking that women are the inferior gender and they have to be suppressed
and not respected. That is why, most of the men, won’t give up any chance to
violate a woman. Activists say that gender sensitisation should be inculcated
in homes so that boys grow up to understand gender equality and therein respect
women. This, they suggest, will lead to
more respect towards the opposite sex. If this has to be a reality, then we
will have to wait for the next generation, that is, the children who are one or
two year olds to grow up. But do we have that patience to wait that long? Or
should we wait and let the crimes continue? Of course, not. In such a scenario,
the Verma Committee does give a few hopes. The hope that government will look
at the report empathetically and will implement it soon, at least some of them,
so that grave crimes like rape are rooted out from our society. Till then, let
parents, teachers and each member of the society take a pledge of protecting
women and girl children. The girl you might see being molested or attacked may
be a stranger to you but come forward and lend a helping hand. If you won't,
then, a notice of caution – the next victim can be one from your family. WE
AS CITIZENS NEED TO ACT.
