On New Year’s Eve, women in an area in Bengaluru were molested at night in large numbers. 1500 police personnel had been deployed there but they proved to be idle spectators. Such facile excuses about incidents of this nature cut no ice. In a globalised metropolis like Bengaluru, it happens to be a shocking incident. The state should have made prompt arrests, filed charges against the accused and assured maximum safety to women. The police claimed that they installed many CC TV cameras in the area but could not spot the molesters. State Home Minister G Parameshwara should have hauled the police over the coals so that they were made aware of their failure to perform their duty. Instead, as is the awful practice in India today, he has blamed the shameful act on the western culture and western dress of women. He tarnished the image of the government saying that such things happen.
No wonder, molesters would now be encouraged to think that they need not be ashamed of what they do. And the women molested have only such terrible things to put up with. They are told that they should not have been out in the dark and should have covered themselves so that they did not attract molesters. They should not report the crime or lodge FIRs. Though complaints against sexual harassment are said to have gone up considerably, there is still a long way to go. A large number of police officials have the same male chauvinist attitude as the Karnataka Home Minister. Bengaluru is a hub of industrial activity and educated women from different states go there in groves. A few years ago, there was an exodus of north-eastern women employed there. The state government should ensure the safety of women.