If one peeps into the farthest reaches of history, one finds that rape has been around for a very long time. Predominantly it is the male who is the aggressor with tendencies to dominate and force the women to do something against their will. The idea of power and anger work as the motivating forces behind sexual violence. Yet, it is ironical that such cases of sexual assault, rape and abuse to the women are the least reported.

In India, abuse of power by policemen recruited through corruption are found conniving in crimes instead of preventing it. Politicians with criminal cases not only fight elections but also win them using their goonda muscle power. This leads to a complete degradation of law and social order with a judiciary system that takes decades to settle even simple cases. The masses of India, therefore, instead of feeling secured, look at the administration, policing, governance and judiciary with Skepticism. One wonders if India really got freedom!

However, last week’s gang rape of the 23 year old girl on December 16, 2012 – brutally terrorized and tortured with coercive sexual assaults – who battles for her life* in Safdarjung hospital in New Delhi has enraged the youth of India. The photos of the protests that have been going on ceaselessly - appear almost like a revolt! - candidly reveal the angry mood of young India that seeks change.  [*She died on December 29, 2012]

The change to live in a free and civilized society.

The Gender Imbalance

A biased mindset has been created and perpetuated over the millennia by the patriarchal structure of the Indian society favoring male children over the girl child that has brought about the gender imbalance or sex ratio. 

This cultural pressure on the women to give birth to sons is imposed with a preconceived notion that a male child is an “asset” since he can supposedly earn and support the family. On the other hand a daughter is considered as a “liability” since she will eventually be married off to another family, and so will not contribute financially to her parents. The notion is further underscored by the burden of raising a dowry – although legally banned in India – for a daughter's marriage.

The widespread sex-determination technology available today is being grossly abused leading to selectively aborting female fetuses as a social custom. The familial abuse and violence persists in brutalizing the mother for bearing girls and disobeying the family’s decision to abort the child. In case the mothers disobey the husband’s family decision to abort the female fetus and report it to the authorities, there seems to be none or negligible support. The FIRs are not encouraged and when they do get filed, the judicial system delays the justice or gives a light sentence. It is also ironic that the mother-in-laws who themselves are women are either found a party to such tragedies or totally helpless under the bullying diktats of the patriarchal structure.

Thus, the preference of a male child becomes the precursor of discrimination and parents tend to neglect the girl child. Crudely, the boy will get food first, the girl last; the boy will go to school, the girl not; etc.
 
Worst is when one hears about cases where a mother is able to give birth to the baby girl who somehow dies in the first few days. When feticide fails, gendercide takes over. Every four minutes, a girl in the age group of 1 to 5 years in India dies due to neglect of parents and medical attention.
 
Resultantly, while the sex ratio for the entire world population is 101 males to 100 females, comparatively, the sex ratio in India is 109.4 males to 100 females. Alarmingly high is the sex ratio in Punjab with 126 males to 100 females and in Haryana with 122 males to 100 females.

What does all this mean?

It means that today there are approximately 15 million “surplus” males in India in the age group of 15 to 35. This number of 15 million “surplus” or “wifeless” males is projected to rise to 30 million before the end of this decade. Now this is large scary number of potentially sex-starved, frustrated and angry monsters! The recent gang rape of Nirbhaya is a case in point. And, it is also important to understand that Nirbhaya's case is not an isolated one. Due to the gender imbalance and the sex-starved, maddened maniacs roaming around in every nook and corner of the country, the scenerio of similar criminal acts involving abduction, gang rapes, terrorizing and suppression of women at large, will only get worse by the day.
 
It also means that the gender imbalance is a major cause of violence and abuse of women. This aspect is clearly proven by the fact that in Haryana and Rajasthan, as reported in the news, due to scarcity, women are purchased from other states as wives and because they are being purchased, they are not only commodified but worst, shared (read abused, molested, prostituted and even raped) by many. So much for the male libido!

In conclusion, if one goes by the diktats of the Khaps and the dominance imposed by the patriarchal society, the role of woman in India is supposedly to merely stay home, do house chores, sacrifice herself into assisting her husband and raising children, sparing no time for self-development. Particularly in the rural areas, therefore, she is given hardly any education and forbidden to work in the society independently. Ironically though, the same rural woman is put to strenuous work of bringing drinking water from miles away, gathering wood for domestic fuel or help the family in the fields while the men are seen lounging on their khats smoking hookah.

The need of the hour is to change the mindset. And this can be achieved if every individual understands the problems arising out of gender imbalance.

One hopes that this awareness will lead to a positive change in India. Besides the much needed reforms sought in police, judiciary and administration, the raw and angered energy of the youth will also need to get channelized to a better understanding of the socio-cultural ethos of India and much needed change.
 
Wake up the youth of India! As much as you love your mother, learn to also love the dignity of women, as a rule. And when you have a baby, welcome the arrival of your girl child with absolute joy. For it is because of her, that you read this; and it will be she, who will give birth to the future generations of mankind.

Mother Earth does not need a civilization of bastards!

   

Read Also: Wolves
                  Nirbhaya: The Prologue of Change
                  Metamorphosis  

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