Crime, it seems, has captured the imagination of youngsters big time, an indication of which was unearthed by city cops on social media recently.
Combing social media platforms, the police stumbled upon a few videos created using TikTok, a phenomenally successful micro-video sharing app, eulogizing some infamous goons in the city and the larger district swaggering along escorted by their minions. Incidentally, one of them was arrested following an order issued by the District Collector, invoking provisions of the Kerala Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, shortly after his video emerged.
After checking for the origin of the videos, the social media cell of the police concluded that that they were not posted by goons from their personal ids and, hence, it was not possible to ask TikTok administrators to remove them.
‘Hero worship’
“They were probably the handiwork of some impressionable youngsters who were in awe of the goons and worship them like heroes because of the aura they create by moving around with their gang members and seemingly live life king-size. These videos then probably got shared through WhatsApp and amounted to glorifying anti-social elements,” said an official associated with the social media wing of the police.
The incident is in sync with the trend of increasing involvement of youngsters in crimes reported in the city and the district at large.
18-25 age group
“We have noticed the involvement of youngsters, especially those in the 18-25 age group, in cases predominantly related to drugs and assaults, which they commit in a state of high after using drugs. Pressure at workplace is now common, to escape from which many youngsters start using drugs and subsequently get caught in the vortex of crime,” said K. Laljy, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Ernakulam).
However, Naveen James, a 25-year-old lawyer, said there was also an element of toxic masculinity that came easy to youngsters, a section of whom found anarchy an ideal state and even wore criminal cases registered against them as a badge of honour.
“From my limited experience as a lawyer, I get the impression that such youngsters are more into drug peddling and theft and mostly stay away from serious cases. Quick money is a lure and I personally know guys from very good families volunteering for such illegal activities,” he said.
However, that is not always the case as the gruesome murder of a 19-year-old allegedly by his friends-turned-foes at Nettoor proved. “All the accused were youngsters and they did it a state of high under the influence of drugs,” said C. Vinod, Station House Officer, Maradu.
‘Quotation’ cases
And therein lies the biggest instigator behind a majority of crimes by youngsters — drugs. “Drug abuse has emerged a necessary evil or even a qualification in a society where there is demand for ‘quotation’ work, mostly involving youngsters, to settle personal, professional and business scores with rivals. For, no normal person can hack to death an absolute stranger purely for monetary gains, and the mind numbing drugs come in handy then. That is why there is almost a direct proportion between the usage of drugs and crimes among youngsters,” said A.S. Ranjith, Deputy Excise Commissioner, Ernakulam.
For a glittering life
Arjun Balachandran, a 25-year-old business consultant with a global corporate firm, cited “peer pressure” as a main reason for youngsters gravitating towards the world of crime. There may be one rotten apple in a group and that person’s bad influence could lead peers down the path of doom.
“As fancy lifestyles are increasingly becoming the norm, the new generation goes in pursuit of that glittering life, making them vulnerable to all the accompanying pitfalls. Greater access to films and web series, many of which are way too violent, across various live-streaming platforms, may also be a bad influence on an already vulnerable youth,” he said.
Harnessing energy
Ajithkumar Thampan, noted criminologist and former chief investigator with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, London, said youngsters alone could not be blamed for their mess and pointed towards the all-pervading loss of hope and social disintegration, making them more individualistic. “No one is born a criminal but society turns them into one. But all is not lost with these youngsters as they proved with their exemplary volunteer work during last year’s floods. Unfortunately, there is no system to harness it, correct them and lead them towards a meaningful life,” he said.
It is not that youngsters suddenly turn criminals on entering adulthood. Going by increasing incidents of children in conflict with law, the seeds of a problematic future seem to be getting planted quite early in their lives. The villain — drugs — crops up here as well.
Biji George, Assistant Commissioner of Police and the district nodal officer for juvenile-related incidents, recollected an incident in which the police happened to trace a Class 3 student who was into drugs.
“In the last three years, incidents involving juveniles have spiked and drugs was the inducer in a majority of cases. The inherent curiosity of their age means that they are lured into experimenting with drugs out of peer pressure and a large section among them turns habitual users. As they progress into pedlars in the next stage, mobility becomes a problem and they find an easy solution by stealing two-wheelers. This is the overwhelming pattern we have noticed in these cases,” he said.
K.B. Zaina, district Child Protection Officer, cited the proliferation of drugs near school campuses as the biggest contributing factor, luring children into the menace.
“More than 90% of cases that come up before the Juvenile Justice Board have drugs as the triggering factor. Unless society collectively wakes up to this danger, the situation will only get progressively worse,” she said.
Materialistic life
Noted psychiatrist C.J. John goes one step further and warns that unless properly dealt with, violence and crimes involving youth could emerge as one of the most challenging mental health problems in another five years.
He pointed out that there were many aspects to the problem, one of which was the lack of life skills of youngsters, leaving them with abysmally low levels of tolerance in dealing with frustration and stress.
“Life has also turned increasingly materialistic and, for an average youth, the yardstick for measuring his life is how much he is able to enjoy it. This is intrinsically linked to money and earning it by any means become acceptable. Incidents such as murder of a lover should not be seen in isolation, but as different facets of a larger problem. That will help us realise the magnitude of the challenge we are staring at,” said Dr. John.
