The Supreme Court's order for the removal of all videos and photographs of minors in rape cases from social media. Patna High Court's order restraining the media from reporting on the probe into the shelter homes horror. Prompted politicians and public figures who cites plenty of implausible reasons (short skirts, bad stars, chow mein) for rapes. Does discussions were held on these issues and not on why rape happens and why men brutalise women.
The disgraceful news of "mass sexual abuse" of minor girls at government-funded and NGO-run shelter homes in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh has shaken the nation and drawn attention once again to the issue of safety and protection of residents in those institutions. The term shelter home is self explanatory. It's a home. It's supposed to give shelter. A shelter home is supposed to be a safe house. They were supposed to be a place where women in distress could live a life of dignity, can rehabilitate themselves economically and emotionally, but instead shelter homes for women are turning out to be brothels.
Young girls being sexually abused in shelter homes is something we had heard about. However, this revelation really proves that whatever is said about these places is actually true. Our experiences say that traffickers and brothel managers conduct their business in secrecy and fear because they know that they might get punished if they are caught, but the people who were arrested for the Muzaffarnagar or the Deoria shelter home were doing their business without any fear of retribution or shame. This gives an impression that the owners/managers of the shelter homes enjoy a certain degree of impunity – they probably thought they could get away with the crime – so brutal and gruesome!
One must ask the government questions regarding its role in the entire affair. On the other hand, it also raises questions about the civil society. How "civil" is our society. Did no one living in Muzaffarpur know what was going on inside the shelter home? Many people who lived nearby and were interviewed later had suspicions, but they did not report the matter because the person who ran it was a powerful figure.
The state and the civil society needs to introspect and assure that these girls are protected, that they get safe spaces to live, that they get the opportunity to become empowered individuals and not just victims who are forgotten in a week's news cycle. The task is huge and one that needs sensitisation and therein lies the challenge.
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