It would, indeed, not be an exaggeration to say that hardly a day misses without the shameful news of sexual assault on women in the length and breadth of our beloved country, whose leaders never tire of making tall claims of safety of women. But in fact, the safety of women has so far remained a distant dream. A few recent instances shall suffice to prove this claim.
Right after the infamous and most heinous incident of Nirbhaya in December 2012, the then Government formed a committee headed by Justice J. S. Verma, former Chief Justice of Supreme Court, to recommend amendments to the existing Criminal Law for quicker and more stringent punishment for the criminals of sexual assault against women. However, the Supreme Court of India already observed in 2017 that stringent laws and punishments against rape may not be enough to fight rising crimes against women. After making holistic study of this vexed issue, the ingenuity of the retired judges and legal experts could recommend life imprisonment for the rapist while disagreeing with death penalty. Government’s other efforts like creation of Women’s Cell, all women police post, National Commission for women, etc. are undoubtedly praiseworthy, but the purpose of all these steps still remains defeated.
Horrendous Instances
The recent case of brutal rape-murder of trainee doctor in RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata sparking widespread outrage and nationwide protests by doctors, the K. Hema Committee report revealing horrid tales of sexual exploitation by what they call ‘casting couch’ in Malayalam film industry, the alleged sexual assault of two four-year-old nursery girl students of a school in Badlapur in Thane, Maharashtra and the consequent protests by the local people are all trumpeting our abysmal failure in ensuring the safety of women. These are the reported incidents that caught nation’s attention which may well be called tip of the iceberg as the unreported incidents far outnumber the reported cases. The NCRB data 2023 reveals 90 rapes per day or one rape after every 16 minutes.
Why we have so far utterly failed to restore safety and security of women and why all our efforts in this direction ended in smoke? The situation indeed calls for a serious deliberation. After the brutal rape-murder at RG Kar Medical College, Kolkata, the same platitudinous suggestions from various quarters, including that from the Prime Minister, are pouring in i.e. “make the punishment for rape more stringent.”
Prophylactic Steps
Even the most effective medicine is bound to backfire if it isn’t supported by necessary preventions. Similarly, if we are serious to stop crime against women, we must first take necessary preventive steps to make any endeavour in this direction fruitful. Almost all religions consider this issue seriously and recommend some guidelines, including punishment. But Islam has given elaborate guidelines suggesting prophylactic measures to check the crime against women. It asks people to strictly follow the guidelines to raise the societal morality to the extent that automatically acts as great impediment in making assault on women. Even after that if someone crosses the boundary, it prescribes harsher punishment in public to the perpetrator. Some of such important preventive steps are here.
Moral Rearmament
It is the sense of morality that differentiates a human being from beasts. Morality is nothing but a developed sense of right and wrong. Islam prescribes a bounden duty for a Muslim to act and propagate righteousness and eschew wrong. Freedom oscillates between the boundary of right and wrong. It advocates the theory limited freedom. It means one’s freedom ends where other’s nose starts. The moment one transcends this boundary, one becomes slave of vain desires degenerating oneself to the level of beast. The Qur’an hits this point in its unique way, saying “Have you seen such a one who takes his own vain desire as god? Allah (i.e. His Law) left him go astray and sealed his hearing and heart (understanding) and put a cover on his sight. Who then will guide him whom Allah has abandoned? Will you not then receive admonition?” (45:23) Not only Islam but all other major religions have given importance to moral codes in their own way to achieve some standard of societal morality.
It is, therefore, incumbent upon parents and teachers to inculcate and infuse in children the sense of morality. What is inculcated in childhood leaves an indelible imprint in mind that guides and controls him the whole life and acts as a deterrent to cross the limit.
Gender Segregation
Free intermingling of two opposite sexes is also one of the important reasons for the crime against women. This becomes more inflammable when the two meet freely at the age of puberty. Attraction to the opposite sex is a natural phenomenon that Allah has created for procreation and continuation of human race. But this attraction that naturally results in sex must be given right and dignified direction for its fulfilment which we all call divine institution of marriage. Free intermingling of two adults of opposite sexes, particularly when adulthood is nascent, at schools and colleges and other such institutions is sure to give rise to crime against women. Hence it is necessary to segregate the two sexes in schools, colleges and other institutions by doing away with the morally devastating western concept of coeducation which militates against the Indian culture and ethos.
Modest Attire
Human beings, as they grew civilised, needed dignified clothing to cover their bodies. The Qur’an mentions that a cloth to be called civilised must serve two basic purposes i.e. cover the private area of the body and serve as protection and adornment. “O’ Children of Adam, We have sent down to you garments to cover your private area and as protection and adornment.” (7:26)
The present robes in fashion can in no way be called modest as they do not cover the private area; they cover only the private organ. The lower neckline tight blouse donned with above-knee skirt, the skin-tight jeans and tops flaunting bare navel area and other semi-nude dressesrevealing bosoms and other parts of private area can in no way be called a modest garment by any reasonable standard. Such clothing causes arousal among boys who, as and when get chance, are more prone to commit crime. It is necessary that school/college uniform and even normal attire must be non-revealing and fully covering the private area.
Licensed Licentiousness
Adding fuel to fire, there is legal sanctions to various types of promiscuity and licentiousness in our country. Awarding legal status to consensual sex outside marriage, pre-marriage sex, live-in relationship, censor-board-licensed films portraying women in semi-nude, nay negligibly scant dress, acting bed scenes or rape scenes, same sex ‘marriage’ (the Supreme Court in 2022 sanctioned equal rights to those in live-in relationships while also recognising homosexual live-in couples), easy access to hardcore porn in every hand, the easy availability of contraceptives, etc. have let lose spectre of licentiousness in our society, depicting women as a mere sex object in sheer violation of basic humane treatment to women not to speak of their dignity. Unless such licensed licentiousness is declared a grave crime, the aim of achieving safety and security of women shall continue to remain a distant dream. Such wanton sexual behaviours have also resulted in demeaning the divine institution of marriage.
Malady Within
These are a few major devastating maladies within our ‘civilised society’ eating away its warp and woof, making the society more and more savage and menacing for women in particular. The maladies, however, are not incurable. What is required is sheer will and sustained efforts. A few prophylactic steps, as suggested above, are prerequisites that need to be taken first to impede the inexorably rising incidents of rape. Only thereafter stringent punishment to the perpetrators shall prove effectual. Shorn of these prerequisites, all endeavours to achieve the goal of safety and security of women are bound to prove a fool’s errand.