April 26, 2005
 

Shiv Sena's brazen take on rape of minor

Last week, a girl, either 16 or 17 years old, studying at a college in Chembur, was raped by a Mumbai police constable named Sunil Atmaram More in a police station. Her crime is still unknown. She was hanging out on Marine Drive with a few friends. Sunil More asked them to come to the police station. There, he took the girl inside to take a statement from her, leaving her male friends outside. He then raped her. Strangely enough, the boys did not protest him taking her inside. The girl screamed while he carried out his despicable act and passers-by, hearing the screams, broke open the cabin door and rescued her. Sunil More was arrested under a charge of rape. He has been suspended.

The Shiv Sena, which is not in power in Maharashtra, has its own take on the issue. While it acknowledges that the incident was 'inhuman', a front-page article in its mouthpiece "Saamna" effectively implies that if women dress the way they do nowadays, they should be ready for the repercussions as well. Excerpts from the article gives us an indicator of how sick their mind is.

There seems to be a competition among youngsters to show their undergarments in the name of 'below-waist' fashion. It is no longer feasible for a family to roam on Chowpatty. To see girls dangle a cigarette openly is worrisome. If a man is incited by such clothes, who can one blame?"

So it is her fault that she chose to take a walk along Marine Drive in the company of male friends. At this point in time, I do not have information on what kind of clothes the rape victim was wearing. Even if she was wearing low waist jeans, Sunil Atmaram More had no rights to impose himself on her, a minor at that. Perhaps the Shiv Sena feels that instead of hanging around on Marine Drive, she ought to have been making chapaatis at home.

The Indian Express has a translation of the Saamna article.

I have lived in Bombay, albeit for five years till 1984 when I was 9 years old.

Labels: mumbai

Rambled @ 2:21 PM

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