It’s becoming increasingly difficult in our country to freely hold an unusual opinion. This week’s brouhaha over an actor’s comments about the Delhi rape is the latest example.
A PTI news report came out last week, which quoted Indian actor Rahul Bose making some rather outlandish comments. Apparently, Bose is of the opinion that we must give the notorious December 16th rapists a chance to reform themselves.
The article appeared on several news websites, most carrying the same headline: “Delhi gang-rape accused must be given chance to reform: Rahul Bose”. Some indulged in clear editorializing with the headline “Rahul Bose speaks in favour of Delhi gangrape accused”
The lead paragraph stated, “Actor activist Rahul Bose on Friday came out in favour of giving the perpetrators of last year's Delhi gang rape a chance to reform…”
Much of the remaining article consisted of his actual quotes, but by then the average sensitive reader is blinded by the preposterousness conveyed in the headline and the lead.
Before you knew it, the comments section was filled with indignant retorts; each more incensed than the one below it. Sample these (reproduced just as):
u want afzal gurus n kassabs to hang so u can celebrate their deaths,but these evil doers u want them to reform?...
If his wife get raped then he will know the pain what the innocent girl gobe through, these type of idiots we have to shoot them for making this kind of ridiculous, disgusting statements…
Let his grandmother, mother or his sisters get raped and then he should talk like this...
Bose, presumably in response to the wave of hostility, resorted to Twitter to shed some light on his message, and posted a series of tweets that attempted to do so:
All criminals should be sentenced according to the law, but while serving time I believe if any of them show deep, genuine remorse they should be given a chance to reform in jail. Rapists included. But if the perpetrator shows no remorse, then neither should we. And for all those asking how I would feel if a person dear to me was raped, the answer is : very sad, even angry. But if, over time, the perpetrator showed, deep, genuine remorse while in jail, I would find it in my heart to forgive him. As a civilization that's the only way to evolve to a better, more peaceful place. Hate begets hate. Love, forgiveness even, stops that cycle.
Not surprisingly, this was enough for some news sites to generate a “follow-up” article with equally provocative headlines like “Rahul Bose won't apologise for his reform comments”.
This episode raises a number of points to ponder about:
Why are we so easily provoked?
With the internet, come the trolls. Trolls tend to be particularly graphic with their abuse, and writers often have to learn to take it in his or her stride. Not all dissent is trolling. When you disagree with someone who says rapists should be given a given a chance to reform, you can either counter the person with a coherent argument (dissent), or curse the person’s mother, sister, wife and daughter (trolling). In this case, there was a disturbing amount of trolling on Twitter and in the comment section of news websites.
These people who wished that Rahul Bose’s wife would get raped so he “understands the pain”, are they not assaulted by the multiple levels on which their words make no sense?
Firstly, when a woman is sexually abused, it is not her husband or her father that feels the pain, it is the woman herself. What was the need to bring the female relatives of Rahul Bose into the picture?
Secondly, don’t they see the hypocrisy in standing up for one rape victim by wishing for the rape of another? Doesn’t this make them as bad as the rapists, or at least as bad as they claim Rahul Bose is? Surely there’s a better way to get their point across.
The point is not whether Bose is right or wrong. The point is that there seems to be no space for an alternative opinion in our society. When 1 million people agree on something (rapists deserve no goodwill) and 1 person disagrees (rapists should be given the chance to reform), the apparent tendency is for the 1 million to pounce on this wayward one until he or she is forced to shut up. This insecurity of the majority is baffling. It’s as if they consider their common belief so fragile that it cannot endure the weight of debate.
We see this happen over and over again. At the Jaipur Litfest, when Ashis Nandy made a statement about SC/ST populations being prone to corruption, instead of waiting to confirm if he was being ironic, or putting Mr. Nandy in his place with well-thought out arguments, detractors chose the easy way out and tried to get him arrested.
The validity of Bose’s comments
At first glance, which is suspect is all a vast majority invested in the article, it seemed like Rahul Bose’s statement could be dismissed off as a deliberate controversy generator. But perhaps it was the fact that he was one of the few Bollywood actors that usually could be taken seriously outside of movies that struck an odd chord with some.
Bose’s comments were actually directed at all criminals, not in particular the perpetrators of the Delhi gangrape, as suggested by the news reports. In his opinion, criminals, whether rapists or otherwise, who show genuine remorse should be given a chance to reform in jail. It may be a wildly utopian notion to imagine victims of heinous crimes ever attain the kind of closure that will allow them to forgive their attackers, but as long as Rahul Bose is not imposing his belief on others, he should be allowed to have his.
It could be interesting to go off on a tangent and ponder about the concept of forgiveness. Should there be a blanket ban on forgiving all criminals? Or are some crimes less forgivable than others?
However, I think that it’s too soon to start worrying ourselves with what to do with convicts of sex crimes when our system can barely manage to take them off the streets in the first place (the National Crime Records Bureau puts the conviction rate for rapes in India at about 26%). We haven’t yet reached a stage where we have the luxury of arguing about criminal remorse; right now the priority should be to bring some sort of justice to the thousands of rape victims in our country. Since we are doing a shoddy job of ensuring that the rape survivor herself is able to rehabilitate her life, it is absurd to expect a public discourse on prisoner rehabilitation.
Journalistic responsibility
Also worth discussing is the role of the media. Though it is not common practice for newspapers/ websites to spend too much time enhancing an agency story (like PTI), it may be prudent for them to begin exercising a little more care in news selection and editing. If a story like this one (which was not of as much new value as it was provocative) has been selected, then it may be wise to present it as unsensationally as possible. It was quite clear that this piece of news was designed to incite more than to inform the public.
(Nandita Jayaraj writes about her encounters with the strange and interesting. You can send her feedback at nandita.j@thehindu.co.in. You can also tweet her @nandita_j )
Keywords: Rahul Bose, rape, criminal, forgiveness, Twitter, trolling, media, freedom of speech, intolerance
These remarks and events invariable lead to the question of human
tolerance. Specifically Indian's lack tolerance. Why should I be
respectful of a belief held by millions when I don't feel it's
correct. Having to apologizing for holding an alternative view to the
millions is nonsense.
The things is that when someone bases their argument on reasoning and
the other on emotions, faith etc., their can be no further debate on
that. Expecting to have a peaceful debate between the two group is
unlikely to happen.
@Suneil - Of course people can make make fun of others' views. That's
part of the whole freedom of speech deal. The kind of criticism I have
a problem with is the kind that is made by people who do not bother to
spend any effort to explain what they feel is wrong, and instead
resort to childish tantrums that really serve no purpose at all.
As for your Modi-Wharton deal, I'm afraid you seem to have made some
assumptions about my stand on the issue. I have never commented on it.
Not just celebs, even all of us, have to face the repercussions for
the public statements we make, but I don't think that justifies
personal abuse. Thanks for reading and commenting :)
@Mandeep - Thanks for reading and commenting. I think anyone who
disagrees with Rahul's view can and must speak their mind. But these
people owe it to themselves and society to base their reaction on some
line of reasoning. By resorting to cheap tactics like threats and
emotional outbursts devoid of any logic, they do themselves, and other
critics a disservice. If my lead paragraph did not get that point across
I apologise.
A nicely written article. Actually most people don't mind reading the whole article and if at all they do read, they don't analyze it with a clear mindset as it is already blocked by the headline. As far as the comments are concerned, people give worse comments all the time e.g. abusing people who are from a particular state or region, if their name suggests that they belong to minority, even using curse words which actually lead me to think if there is actually any moderation or it is just a message that we get ( though I admit, I have not seen any abusing comments in The Hindu till now... Good Job Mr./Ms. Moderator).
I find your line of argument in the first paragraph somewhat out of logic, independent of my views on what Rahul said/meant. Essentially, if Rahul can speak his mind (that the rapists should be given a chance to reform), then why can't an average reader (who might not support or might support Rahul's view)? Just because the average reader is feeling indignant, does that mean that he/she can not express his/her viewpoint? Seems an odd argument to me.
However, I completely agree to resorting to comments involving Rahul's female relatives is completely immature and out-of-line.
Anyway, is is quite easy to analyze a situation from an obvious point of view (i.e., "Why are we so easily provoked?"); try to go deeper (such as - Why should we not be provoked?). How to express that provocation is a matter of debate, of course.
Is killing better than raping,Is Raping a small child better than raping
a grown up Is pouring acid on the face of a girl better than raping her?
All this things happen over and over again,but why this Delhi matter
agitated so many people so much.
Wonderfully written.. ! and thanks to Rahul Bose.. for standing out
different from many other celebrities around.
Well said , I think to accept dissent and respect other's opinion is a
sign of maturity which clearly many of us are lacking ... In a
civilized and free society ,everyone is free to express their opinion ,
and we should counter them with logic and substance and not by mud
slinging.
I fail to see how it is difficult to hold a different view: in this
day and age of social media, people can not only hold alternate views,
they can also express them far more freely. By the same count, people
who disagree with that view can equally vehemently make fun of that
view: isn't that what freedom of expression is about? I find it
strange that you endorse denying Modi's speech at Wharton as an
exercise in freedom of expression, but you portray Rahul Bose as the
victim of conservative thought policing when his views (that he aired
publicly and left open for public comment) were ridiculed and
attacked. When someone, especially a so-called celebrity, puts forth
their views in public, they have to be ready for repercussions and
counter-views. So long as he is not being physically harmed, I find
the current state of affairs perfectly satisfactory: freedom of
expression is not the sole prerogative of the left, you know.