The Nirbhaya Case Has Taught Us Many Lessons. Our Battle Is Not Over Yet.

The Nirbhaya Case Has Taught Us Many Lessons. Our Battle Is Not Over Yet.

Last night when I was going to bed, the last thought in my head was of the Nirbhaya rapists. I was hoping that at least this time the execution will actually happen. I didn’t want to wake up and hear the news of the scums having found another loophole to escape the death sentence. The first thing I did after waking up was check my phone and there it was, news of the Nirbhaya convicts finally hung until dead. I suddenly felt lighter; I felt like a dime size area of our planet has been disinfected. Four monsters have successfully been wiped off the face of the earth and for maybe a microsecond, I felt slightly safer.

None of these feelings are rational. The convicts have been locked up so they weren’t a direct threat to anyone; they couldn’t have raped more women. But they were a direct threat and humiliation to justice, to karma. They represented all the heinous pseudo-humans with no shred of humanity in our society. And watching them live, occupy space in our planet and breathe, made all of us suffer.

It was a long and complicated procedure and went on for eight long years. The last couple of weeks were even more unnerving. Being so close to justice and returning home empty-handed and being mocked by the convicts’ lawyer didn’t break Nirbhaya’s mother. She was on the verge of breaking but kept going.

I know it’s a day to rejoice but I don’t think the battle is won here. Four monsters are dead but there are so many out there, still raping women. Some of them are fantasising about rape, some of them are planning one. Some are at it while I write this. Some men are groping women as you read this. They don’t seem to be scared of the consequences. In fact, I wonder why people can’t not be criminals out of ethics and not fear. But then considering even law and order can’t stop crime, wanting people to moral police themselves is farfetched. Here’s what we really need!

We need more stringent laws

It’s illegal to rape a woman and that comes with consequences. Yet, the consequences aren’t deterring enough for men who think they are rather invincible. In fact, at this point, men think that they won’t get caught and even if they do, they will probably get out of jail in a couple of years. Anyway, how are they using freedom productively? We need laws that are so strict that men don’t even think of groping a woman. We need more transparency in our judicial system so money and power can’t help a criminal slip through the gaps.

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We don’t want to wait years for justice

Speaking about our judicial system, the Nirbhaya case brought to the forefront the need to fix the loopholes in our laws. The convicts bought a lot of time exploiting our judicial system. The Supreme Court has been requested to consider reducing the time frame during which the convicts can make a mercy plea. Not just that, this case took eight long years and this after it got so much media attention. There are so many cases that aren’t spoken about, which run for several more years. It’s not fair for families to suffer for so many years when all they want is justice. In fact, the fact that it takes so long is another reason rapists aren’t scared of the consequences. They will be out on bail and still living their lives. We need fast track courts and laws that make justice not such an impossible dream.

We want our rights to be acknowledged and supported by law

Rape and sexual assault are not about sex; they are about power. These men feel a rush of adrenaline watching a woman beg for her release and her life. Women’s rights are not acknowledged in our society. The gender-discrimination so deeply rooted in our culture gives men a sense of entitlement and superiority over women. The most common reason of acid attacks is because a man couldn’t handle being rejected by a woman. We need our rights to be protected. Be it more inclusion in professions dominated by patriarchy or safeguarding our rights as daughters and wives. We don’t need authorities normalising groping and eve-teasing. We don’t want the authorities blaming us for wearing short clothes, being out late night or partying as the reason for our rape.

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But none of this will help until men realise…

We can fight for our safety, for being treated like a human, like an equal. But none of it will help if the men don’t change. Most men in our country feel feminism is a women’s thing. No! Feminism is wanting men and women to be treated equally and that’s not our lookout alone. We need our men to feel as strongly about gender-bias as we do. In fact, we want them to realise about the sexism even the good ones unknowingly participate in. We want our sons to understand that no means no and the daughters of our country have as much right to be out at night as they do. We want men to understand that if she accepted your drink, no she has not given a green signal. If she wore a short dress, no she is not asking for it. We want men to understand they have no ownership and entitlement over women and our bodies.

ALSO READ: Nirbhaya Case Update: The Four Convicts Have Finally Been Executed And For Every Woman In India, This Feels Like Justice

Mandatory counselling for children can help

Our country is marvellously handling a virus we had no idea how to deal with. We didn’t know of COVID-19’s existence and yet here we are, treating it like an emergency, rightfully so. Yet, our country has failed to acknowledge the threat to our safety as an emergency. The number of women raped and violated in India is much higher than people dying of coronavirus. I think if we treat this as an emergency, we can solve the problem faster. I wish we had mandatory counselling for children so right from the start they learn to respect women and understand the meaning of consent.

ALSO READ: The Nirbhaya Convicts Lawyer AP Singh’s Horrifying Statements Prove That We’re Never Safe With Such Men Around

Akanksha Narang

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