The Story We Left Unfinished

“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” Why did the Kolkata rape and murder case happen? Whose fault is it truly? Do we as citizens of this great motherland take responsibility or just as others, we should blame the system and government? Which is it? Where are we going wrong? What kind of society are we living in where a girl is being raped and some of our “respected members of the society” are mocking and making derogatory memes about the incident? Have we failed as a society, or is this society's reality? Many questions and we await all answers. Do we need to look within or does the justice system have to be reformed? Is protest going to help us or we are just wasting time and wax with candles in our hands?

The happening of Kolkata rape and murder case not only shocked and shamed us but also left us with all these questions that need to be answered. The amount of anger and rage is what is just left with us. the medical students' protests around the country, the CBI probing case, incident making its way into national news channels are enough for the country and for making a crime-free society or do we need swift justice in this case? What is the strongest punishment one can get in India, hanging to death? Will it be enough to send chills down the spine, and stop any other rapes in India? If this is enough why is there no decline in the number of cases? Aren’t we in dire need of something more, like “CAPITAL PUNISHMENT”? punishment that might bring a revolution in the system and the country. But is it possible in a country where politics and politicians try to run and control everything? The representatives of ours are not able to represent the thoughts and culture we need. The mentality of society, can we ever change that? The urge to pose restrictions on girls and women every time this type of incident happens is the only option we are left with. This is where we have failed as a society and the world has advanced. Yes, this is true that we need girls and women to be a little more self-aware but teaching should also be given to boys and men about how to act and respect other genders. We need to educate them about safety and the trauma that a victim and her family face after an incident like this.

But is education enough to change the way society thinks? No, just by educating we trying to help them open up their minds. But will all these be enough? No, we need to educate girls about fighting and running the scene, and a need for training in the area of self-defense. But what about some who have not changed their mindset and stereotypes with the changing times? By exposing them standing up for yourself and trying to shame them in public, the outrage among youth on social platforms and in the end a police complaint. Will this be enough? No, but this is the start, a step toward a secure future and a country with zero tolerance against women’s safety, a heavenly future.

Even after the Nirbhaya case, the country hasn’t learned a lot, instead, the cases have spiked and the conviction rate has remained low. The cases peaked in 2016, which happened within 4 years of Nirbhaya. According to NCRB data, the conviction rate between 2018-2022 remained from 26 to 28%. Even though we have strict laws we are still not able to convict the accused. This is mainly because of the lack of evidence or the officer has not done the job honestly or due to the accused influence on the case and the court. In Manipur where 2 girls were stripped naked and paraded, after a year CBI probe is still ongoing, and no death sentence yet even after all the evidence was available on the online platform. There are incidents such as in 2019 Hyderabad, where the police encountered four men suspected of raping a 27-year veterinarian. Police said they were trying to snatch weapons from officers. This encounter was celebrated by the whole country, maybe because of the distrust of our very own judicial system. We need all political parties to come together and make a law that will help restore trust in our judicial system. Our judicial system needs to be robust; we don’t want to wait 8 years to get justice, we want it today, we want it now.

This time it's doctors who have taken the streets. There have been many protests in the past years but many times when someone tries to speak against the government is either shamed or jailed. For example, just look at wrestler protests. We don’t want that to happen this time, we need to keep protesting peacefully until the doctor's demands are met and justice is served to Abhaya or Dr. Di. This fight is not just for doctors to have safety at their workplace but for the safety of every woman in every sector, the fight for the changing perspective and mindset who still believe that it is women’s and girls' dress or the timing of returning home or friendly behavior with men that gives them the right to rape. There's a saying that “a woman’s biggest enemy is a woman”. The fight can only be won if all the women come together and raise the same slogan. Only then your voice will be heard. The time has come to make a united voice and ask for “Capital Punishment” for rapists. Let's use this penalty to turn torture and horror rapists' nightmares into reality.

We come from a country where we call our land “Bharat Maa”, ironically, we are not able to save our mothers, sisters, and daughters. The land where once a great ruler Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj chopped off the hands, legs, and ears of a rapist and made him beg in the streets of his kingdom. Jauhar of Maharani Padmavati signifies her strong sense of honor. The land holds the history of Mahabharata because Kauravas tried to humiliate Draupadi, the wife of Pandavas. The land where even animals came together alongside Rama to fight Ravana who kidnapped Maa Sita. We have seen many fights and sacrifices to protect the honor of women in the past. If we have to make our country great again the first thing is to make a safe and protective environment for women.