Jyoti: The girl who fired up a nation

I don’t know if it has occurred to you, but each time we address her as Nirbhaya or Damini, or any of the other dreadful names coined by newspaper subs, we are doing the young lady disservice. Because buried under the pseudonym is the primitive belief, a belief that we actually want to get away from: That the rape victim’s identity must be protected to save her and her family embarrassment. This, when the nation is gradually coming around to accepting that there is NO shame for the victim or her family, the shame belongs entirely to the rapists and their families. In fact, it is the primitive thinking that discourages women from filing rape complaints, and this allows rapists to get away with it. We simply have to change the goalpost, so that more and more women seek justice, rather than cower at home. 

Am happy that Jyoti’s parents have changed that, even though it came three years late. The poor folks are still searching for justice and closure, the ‘juvenile’ assaulter will walk free this weekend, but at least their daughter shall be remembered and honoured by her real name.  

Is being creepy a crime?

We still don’t know all the facts of the Jiah Khan death case, perhaps we never will, this one looks like Aarushi Part 2. What seems to have been established so far is that it was suicide, not murder, and that the principal abettor of the suicide was one Suraj Pancholi. If convicted, the dude will be jailed for a few years, but that’s a long way off.

The point I want to make on this date is: Pancholi may have been a poor partner, a coward, a creep, an insensitive lout. And chaps such as these need to be dumped immediately. But can he really be charged with abetment? Is that fair? Relationships often don’t work out, couples uncouple, there is inevitably a degree of bitterness, and then life moves on. Now if Jiah was an overly sensitive soul, a fragile individual who completely fell apart as a result of the break-up and could not accept and deal with betrayal by a creep, and chose to kill herself, can the boyfriend be accused of abetment? Is that fair?

I don’t think so. Unless proved in a court of law that he encouraged her to commit suicide, he must be let off.  

A five minute journey that takes a lifetime

This little film from Conde Nast Traveller beautifully captures the India-Pakistan border crossing at Wagah. I had expressed similar sentiments in my diary published in Outlook earlier this year, but this is Fatima Bhutto, so she could cross the border, unlike common man me. Anyway, I like the way the film has been shot, must watch.

Click here.

PS: Am taking a break for Christmas and New Year. See you on the other side. Insha Allah.

Hum Chaar, Hamari Ek.

All eyes, groggy from the revellery of the night before, will be on Delhi on January 1. Because only vehicles carrying the odd number will be seen on the streets. I do not believe this scheme will work in the current scenario in India (read my previous post), but one thing is certain: A whole new revenue stream will open up for the local traffic cops, they are likely to be shaking to the Achhe Din jingle on 31^st night, unlike the rest of us.

Lots of debates have begun on the subject, as alarmed Dilliwallahs have been trying to put Plan B in place (which in most cases is the acquisition of the second car). And not just them, citizens in other large cities have been breathing uneasily, and not because of pollution; a copycat local neta might thrust this measure on his/her constituency. I was criticized (as usual) on my last post for being much too cynical (as usual) about Kejriwal’s idea to save Delhi’s children from death, and a few readers asked me to come up with a solution.

So here’s what I think: Even as we suss what happens when half the cars (allegedly) disappear from Delhi’s roads, governments in Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad and Kolkata must immediately begin working on another policy: One Family, One Car. Or as Sanjay Gandhi might have put it, Hum Chaar, Hamari Ek.

And so this is the best option in my view. No family can own multiple vehicles. The authorities will have to figure out a way to enforce this, and if they do manage to, three things will happen: One, people can drive out whenever they wish, without being at odds and ends. Two, it will dramatically reduce the number of private cars on the roads. And three, it will free up parking spots in public places as well as inside residential areas. Bachcha bachcha knows that parking wars in housing colonies were unheard of in the past, and the mess only began after each member of the family started boasting of a personal vehicle.  

What Sanjay baba could not achieve with human beings, let’s make it happen with machines. His disturbed soul will rest in peace.

(Image courtesy: Shutterstock.)

No one killed Noor Ullah

I am not sure if the judge gave this a thought: Complete acquittal of bhai in the hit, kill and run case would shock the nation’s conscience, and many would lose faith in the judiciary. And that it would reaffirm public’s belief, that if you have the big bucks, you can manipulate the ‘system’. It’s possible the judge took the principle of ‘beyond reasonable doubt’ to its extreme, and ignored an age-old legal maxim. That justice must be SEEN to have been done. Either way, bhai has been let off the hook, and this development should make those like Ms Janhavi Gadkar smile a bit wider. In fact, she should launch a charity initiative ASAP, and hire a kickass PR agency to push it.

But all is not lost; if the state appeals for a review in the Supreme Court, bhai can face jail time all over again. My own hunch: With the ditto same evidence placed on the bench, the SC is likely to take a harsher view. Therefore bhai’s fans must keep their pastries and garlands on hold for some time.

However, what interests me is this: If the SC upholds the acquittal, will the television media do what it so wonderfully did in the Jessica Lal case? Which is to compel the judiciary to order a re-trial. I hope that happens. Noor Ullah may have been a poor man, but his life wasn’t any less precious than Ms Lal’s. All of us need to stand up for him when the time comes.

Chennai: Social media 1. Mass media 0.

Unfortunately, sitting in dry Mumbai, much as though one wanted to (like many other Indians), I could do nothing to help citizens of Chennai. However, images of people and vehicles trapped under water reminded me of 2005, of that dreadful day when the sky literally fell upon our heads. I was one of those stuck in office till late at night, unsure of the extent of the damage, unsure of what my next move should be. This, despite being a journalist working for a daily. All we were getting was sketchy information from colleagues who had ventured out. I prudently decided to stay put at office, many Mumbaikars didn’t, and lives were lost as a result.

What we in Mumbai lacked at the time was social media, and indeed it is this new tool that has helped people in Chennai fare better than we did ten years ago. There have been continuous updates and tweets on the situation… information on the most affected areas, localities that need urgent help, the kind of help that is needed, information about missing family members, and the general dos and don’ts. Am quite certain if we had this support back in 2005, some lives could have been saved. So the next time you scoff at rubbish chatter that goes on on Facebook and Twitter, remember they can help you in perilous times.

One other thing: Mass media had pretty much ignored the Chennai floods, every other silly story was being covered but no attention given to the sufferers there. Once social media got into the act, guilty Big Brother mass media had no option but to emulate. In fact this has become a trend now, social media usually takes the lead. Just goes to show where the future of the media lies. 

Hasta la vista, baby.

So the ‘juvenile’ who was involved in the brutal assault on the Delhi gang rape victim will be out of the ‘correctional facility’ this month. And he will dive into the waiting arms of a caring NGO that will provide him ‘vocational training’ (I hope the staff is all-men). If the incident hadn’t been so tragic, this would have me go ROFL. I understand that the chap can’t be sent to an adult prison, but does that mean we have to treat this ‘juvenile’ rapist cum murderer with kid gloves? Can a person responsible for this level of monstrosity be expected to reform? Was he charged with picking a pocket on that bus? Make no mistake about this: This criminal will be back to his dirty tricks in good time. So what’s the solution? I am no legal expert but the least that should happen to him is to be put on a technological leash, an electronic bracelet, so that there is 24X7 surveillance on his every activity. If the law doesn’t permit even this, well, we should go ahead and do it anyway. Laws are made for the welfare of people, not to put them in danger.

Incidentally, for the statistically inclined, a study in the US reports that 66% of juvenile criminals who have been arrested will become repeat offenders within 24 months. 49% of them will become repeat offenders within the first year. And this includes youngsters involved in petty crimes. Now imagine the probability of the Delhi juvenile growing up to be a gentleman.

Delhi’s odd car(t) strategy

Arvind Kejriwal wants you to drive your car only on alternate days. Nothing wrong with that, this experiment to reduce pollution and traffic has worked in a few other nations. The problem here, as usual, is that the damned cart has been shoved well ahead of the bloody horse. For one, public transport in Delhi isn’t geared up for the fresh load, so this ploy will create more mess on the streets and inside the underground trains. And two, because they have suddenly set the cat amongst Delhi’s well-fed pigeons (contrary to Kejriwal’s famous public referendum theory), many would rush to purchase their second/third/fourth gaddi, thus creating a whole new set of problems. Until the public transport system is made to rock, such ideas are bound to fail.

By the way, I don’t think Kejriwal worries about offending the city’s middle class citizens, he doesn’t care, his vote bank is the lower middle class and the poor, who have no direct stake in this policy. And when the idea fails, he will simply blame the central government for not supporting him. One more brownie point in his war against Modi. At the aam aadmi’s cost.