Fairer Extreme:

Dec 18/2013: The issue of all issues today, correct or not, is the sexual harassment that women undergo in public places. Caught in a spate of such accusations are not just ordinary people but some of the high and mighty in this country. While there is no way the issue can be brushed under the carpet, there is also a genuine concern among a lot of people, not just Union Minister Farooq Abdullah, that even minor incidents are pulled out of the closet, blown out of proportion, given wide publicity, and raised for prime hour discussions by TV channels for days on end, with the sole aim of tittilating viewers. Today's scenario is pretty morbid as offices across the country have suddenly changed in atmosphere  and staff relations have gotten strained for no reason, as reported in some media doing studies on the matter. According to human resource experts the existing rapport and bonhomie between the genders have  indeed become strained. Men have become wary and recruiters are gradually starting to refuse appointments to young women.

There would be genuine fears on the part of employers to recruit and for men employees to sit with women and work. The reality is that nothing much has changed in the Indian social playground, especially in the urban hubs where most work places employing women are located.

It was exactly a year ago that the issue gained momentum, when a para-medic student was raped, tortured and killed in a moving bus in New Delhi, a city that has for long earned notoriety for incidents of eve-teasing and similar crimes against women. The incident brought large sections of the capital’s youths on the streets and everyone hoped that it would result in a spread of awareness on the issue along the length and breadth of the country. It did lead to introduction of tougher laws by Parliament with the aim of providing better security to women. However, as said earlier the social playground or the rules governing gender relations in this country did not budge even after such a gory incident. Crimes against women seem to be increasing on a daily basis. Those with nerves of steel made from stolen iron ore claim that it is only the media now that is blowing up this issue of harassment and torture of women to a screaming extreme. To their argument they add that such crimes always abounded and we had all been sleeping peacefully all these centuries. Why disturb the napping baby tonite!!

The issue has a social context to it. The large-scale entry of women into the white collar workforce began in the 1970s, a process that has progressively reached a stage when women have begun occupying top posts both in the bureaucracy and at corporate levels. Not only that General Motors of the US has a woman as the top boss, our very own State Bank, the megalith of Indian banking, should be considered an example of Indian society where a woman is the chief today. In Orissa itself many young women today head districts as Collectors and Superintendents of Police and match up or excel male counterparts in efficiency and toughness or otherwise.

We as a nation have always been treating our women in a terrible manner. Whether we refer to our ancestors and their attitudes, as can possibly be read in the scriptures of ancient times or most modern Indian literature, womankind is dealt with a certain meanness, as if they are inferior.

Surprisingly, it is the women of this land themselves who have worked hard at devaluing themselves. Let us look, for instance, at the recent case of Devyani Khobragade, our Deputy Consul General in New York. The cops there had her arrested, handcuffed and lo and behold, stripped and searched for God knows what. The allegation against her was of breaking Visa laws and underpaying a domestic help, not of possession of weapons or drugs. It was a simple case of the US snooking a thumb at this poor third world wretch of a country. The government of India has, finally, woken up and taken some tough steps. Good for the country! However, none of our women leaders have dared to point out that many tv channels were constantly showing photos of that lady diplomat primarily because she was pleasant to look at for male viewers. That kind of voyeurism supposedly exists globally. So be it!

Women empowerment may be considered for real in this country, if we observe how, in recent years, large numbers of women are occupying elected seats in the state assemblies and local bodies and the important roles being played by women in various political parties, it will prove a thing or two to some of those incredulous two legged egos.

Attitudes and behavior patterns are changing, as is only to be expected in the changing times. While on one side, people are becoming sexually more active, on the other, women are acquiring a stronger mental strength and fighting spirit. Earlier, such was their mindset that they would avoid making a complaint in the open on issues like sexual attempts on them, for fear it would sully their image and bring disrepute to their families. Now, the social system has certainly changed and women, aware of their unchallenged strength, get provoked on issues and are boldly raising a hue and cry. This trend is more evident in the past one year, after the Delhi gang-rape incident saw public anger against the brutal act, as also pro-women sentiments, reaching a feverish pitch. Whether that sentiment was for eternity or a momentary lapse of reason for the Indian male is quite a different cuppa tea.

There, however, are reasonable doubts as to whether the build-up by the electronic media on sexual harassment of women in recent times is fully justified. A case in point is that of former Supreme Court Judge, Justice AK Ganguly.

Creating such a scenario is tantamount to vitiating the work place  atmosphere. Any woman can, if she so desires, create situations on her own to put men who are not of her liking on the defensive by raising the bogey of sexual innuendo or ‘harassment’ even on the basis of casual talk.

The Justice Ganguly case offered the electronic media an opportunity to sensationalise a matter, with a view to, probably, increasing their viewership.

This, however, is happening much too often at the expense of better options, like engaging people’s attention on the more important issues of how to handle such injustices, how to speak out and also how to offer justice to the victim. The needle of suspicion, therefore, has now started pointing at women who make such allegations. In their over-zealousness, it is quite possible that if one such Ganguly or Tejpal kind of case falls apart, they the tv screen shouters will immediately turn the tables and start shouting down the same women whom they are putting up on a weak and shaky pedestal.

Is it acceptable to take every distraught or disturbed girl's allegations so seriously that society simply crucifies the victim, this time maybe implying a hapless man, without trial?

Before we build up the woman's side of the story to a point of incredulity, let India and the media take care not to overkill the issue.