Women’s Freedom

There is nothing more wonderful in this world than love. Unlike in many places where you can show decent affection in public and nothing bad happens, there are some places in the world where you will literally get beaten and tortured for doing so in public. One such place is India. There are certain groups of people in India who claim that it is due to western culture that the young generation of India is getting ‘ badly influenced ‘. The unfortunate part is, it’s not only limited to holding hands in public or being seen kissing or intimate in public places but even down to celebrating days like Valentine’s Day. Just a few days ago, one such self-styled moral police group called Shri Ram Sena ( Lord Ram Army) tried to teach their lesson to some innocent girls in a place called Mangalore in the Indian state of Karnataka. Their only fault was that they were in a Pub. They were badly beaten by a group of men who claimed that what they did was for their own good as the girls should have known not to go to a place like a Pub. According to them, going to a pub is like embracing western culture as places like pubs are not meant for Indian girls.

What was shocking was not just the incident but also the group’s attitude. They did not come out and apologise for their behaviour, rather they threatened to do so again if the need arises. The response of the state administration, police and some of the political parties was even more shameful when they dismissed the violent act by saying it was merely a ‘ minor incident ‘. There were many people who came out in support of the young women including the people of India and several political parties.  The majority of people condemned that act strongly. The whole nation was united on that matter.  Millions of women in India are now coming onto the streets and are demanding a strong action to be taken against these people who claim they are women’s saviours.

It seems like they need to be taught about their own culture. Their interpretation of Indian culture and Indian women in particular is regressive. How is what these fanatic Hindu groups are doing, any different to what the fundamentalist Muslim groups are doing in India. They should first review and judge their own behaviour before they make allegations against others. If they are so worried about the western culture and that it is going to  invade their Indian souls then instead of the violence against their own people why don’t they ban all the multinational companies and the international organisations running and operating in India. Perhaps they don’t mind their existence and  the women going and working there as long as the money keeps coming and feeding their families.  It’s only an issue when after a long day’s work the women just want to relax a little and want to spend their own hard earned money on themselves ( for instance, going to a pub), that’s when the whole problem starts. The next thing you know they are given the status of loose women and of having bad character as they no longer qualify for the status of ‘ Adarsh Bharatiya Nari ‘ (Ideal Indian Woman).