‘Little has changed since we spoke up for Nirbhaya’

Published - August 17, 2024 01:24 am IST - NEW DELHI:

A placard outside Union Health Ministry’s office in Nirman Bhawan in the Capital on Friday.

A placard outside Union Health Ministry’s office in Nirman Bhawan in the Capital on Friday. | Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

There was a hunger for change and hope for a better future when protests were held for Nirbhaya, but 12 years later, little seems to have changed on the ground, said Dr. Sanjeev Sachdeva, who had come to central Delhi seeking justice for the Kolkata victim. In December 2012, he was among the protesters who had stormed Lutyens’ Delhi after hearing about the brutality with which the 23-year-old girl, who came to be referred to as Nirbhaya, was gang-raped.

The country had witnessed massive protests in the wake of the incident. More than a decade later, people across the country have hit the streets again in solidarity with the Kolkata victim.

Dr. R.K. Bhutani, 76, has been living in Delhi since 1949. “Twelve years ago, I came to India Gate to protest against Nirbhaya’s perpetrators. Back then, people got united for a common cause. Today, people prefer to pick and choose their battles. Nobody seems bothered any more. People don’t rage,” he said.

Dr. Savita Sachdeva said, “Even as the protest for Nirbhaya helped in shaking up the collective consciousness, crimes against women haven’t reduced. However, people don’t seem to care. There is a dissociation among people. I wonder if they are losing hope in the country.”

She said while the Nirbhaya gang rape and murder happened on the road, the Kolkata rape and murder happened inside a safe enclosure. “This fact — that a woman was attacked in a safe enclosure — should have elicited a bigger turnout on the road. But that didn’t happen,” she said.

Shweta Raj, a member of the All India Democratic Women’s Association, was 23 when she hit the streets in solidarity with Nirbhaya. “There was anger against politicians and the government and a mindset that we needed to change the system,” she said.

“Back then, there were conversations about gender and sexual violence. This time, it’s not just a women’s movement. People of all genders and socio-economic backgrounds are coming forward to protest,” said Ms. Raj.

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