Rape As Weapon of Domination: The Clout of Caste And Class in India

Rape in India is one such case where the victim will eventually turn out to be the accused. Indian judicial system has always turned a blind eye in such cases when the offenders are from the rich and elite class or when the perpetrator being the state machinery itself, and heeds a deaf ear to the victims if they are from the Adivasis, Dalits, minorities and the poor.

It has now became the norm that you can get away with any crime against the poor including rape and murder if you have the clout of money or influence over the political system. This has given a free hand for the armed forces and police to inflict any amount of brutality on women and the weak and get unscathed with that. This state fed impunity over the marginalized societies has transformed rape as a ‘state sponsored' weapon of torture and domination for the Armed and Police Forces.

Sixty five years since independence, caste and class divide still hold its clout in the Indian thought processes, though in a milder tone. The thought process around which people react to a precarious situation or crime would depend on whether you could relate to the victim in terms of your caste or social status. As the rich and elite have the laws and state machinery at their disposal, they could always get the tables turned in their favor. This further alienates the suffering of Dalits and minorities from the mainstream and deteriorates the social fabric of Indian society.

Coming to the current protests, there is legitimate reasoning for the people to protest for, but an angry young mob without an organized leadership is a dangerous proportion to ask for. They could be twisted to any form by opportunist forces to meet their personal gains.

It is not that India does not have laws to protect women, but issue is of the lack of will power and the failure of the mechanism that should enforce the same. In the case of the Dalits, Adivasis and minorities, the very own state mechanism that should enforce the law turns out to be the first in vandalizing them. The current protests may bring about certain amount of vigilance in this regard and more rigorous punishments put in place; but however stringent the laws are made, there is a sense among the marginalized people that these laws are tailor made for the upper class and will not come handy when the poor are victimized.

Read the rest of this Countercurrents article (December 27) here.

Onward!