Scores of women were sexually assaulted at
New Year's Eve celebrations in Bangalore
© Vivek Prakash / Reuters
In the city of Bangalore, the largest in the southern Indian state of Karnataka, scores of women were, according to the local media, attacked and molested by groups of men, apparently drunk, on the night of December 31.
The sexual assaults happened despite the presence of 1,500 police on the streets. The incident has spread shock throughout the country.
Referring to the reports, Karnataka Home Minister, G Parameshwara criticized women for dressing “like westerners.”
“In events like New Year or Christmas Day, there are women who are harassed or treated badly. We take precautionary measures,” he said in an interview with the Mumbai-based TV news channel Times Now.
“Unfortunately, what is happening is - as I said - in days like New Year, [on Bengaluru's] Brigade Road, Commercial Street, or MG Road, a large number of youngsters gather. Youngsters who are almost like westerners, they try to copy the westerners not only in the mindset, but even the dressing. So some disturbance, some girls are harassed, these kind of things do happen.”
The minister was condemned for the "irresponsible" remark by the central government's junior home minister Kiren Rijiju, according to AFP.
Parameshwara later claimed he was misquoted.
Abu Azmi, president of the Samajwadi Party’s Maharashtra state branch, was even more blunt in laying the blame on women.
“In these modern times, the more women are naked, the more fashionable, modern and educated they are considered. And this is increasing in the country. This is a blot on our culture,” NDTV quoted him as saying.
"If my sister or daughter is roaming around on December 31 with random men who aren’t their husband or brother, I don’t think that’s right.”
“If there’s petrol near fire, it will burn. If there is sugar, ants will come,” he added.
He obviously thinks that men have absolutely no self-control, nor should they!
Azmi has been known for making similarly controversial remarks over the years. In 2014, he called for women who have sex outside marriage to face the death penalty, for which he was publicly scorned by his son and daughter-in-law.
What about men who have sex outside of marriage? Oh, I forgot! Men have no self-control, but women must have self-control or they deserve to die! That sounds fair.
Bangalore (Bengaluru), India
Parameshwara and Azmi’s remarks prompted a social media uproar.
Parameshwara and Azmi have been condemned by the National Commission for Women (NCW) for their comments, with NCW chairperson Lalitha Kumaramangalam calling for their resignation.
"We have sent summons to both of them over their statements," Kumaramangalam told the ANI news agency. "Few men across political parties have made disgusting statements. If men at this level say such things, where is the nation heading?"
Nowhere, obviously! Modern or western dress has appeared only recently in India, for the most part, but rape and sexual assault has been prevalent in Indian society for millenia. At least half of all children in India have been or will be raped. If the numbers were ever properly collected, I'm sure that the vast majority of women in India will have suffered sexual abuse at some time in their lives.
But, apparently, it's their fault for being born girls! To call girl's fashions 'a blot on our country' is stupid and shameful. It is the predatory attitude of men toward women and girls that is the real blot on India. It has always been and, by all appearances, will always be as no-one in power seems to actually care about it.
Sex crimes are a widespread problem in India. The National Crime Record Bureau said over 34,000 cases of rape were reported throughout 2015, or around one rape every 15 minutes. This is often linked to the traditionally conservative and patriarchal nature of Indian society, and authorities have been criticized for not doing enough to protect vulnerable women.
In August 2016, India’s Minister for Tourism Mahesh Sharma warned female visitors not to wear short dresses or skirts, or walk alone at night, “for their own safety.” Like the two lawmakers in the Bangalore case, Sharma was rebuked for his comments.
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