By: Priyanka Saurabh
Kerala’s Kozhikode court has granted anticipatory bail to 74-year-old writer and social activist Civic Chandran in a case of molesting a woman on the ground that she was wearing “inflammatory clothes”. The court said in its order that if a woman was wearing provocative clothes at the time of the incident, then the sections related to sexual harassment cannot be imposed on a man. The accused Civic Chandran had submitted photographs of the said woman in his bail application. The court said that the photographs produced by the accused Civic Chandran of the victim showed that the complainant herself was wearing sexually provocative clothes. The court did not ask the accused Civic Chandran as to what the allegedly provocative clothes of the woman he had with him at the age of 74 were saying.
While granting anticipatory bail to the author and social activist Civic Chandran in a sexual harassment case, the Kozhikode sessions court in Kerala has observed that prima facie the charge under section 354(a) (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code is not applicable if the woman is wearing “sexually provocative” clothing. The alleged incident took place on February 8 this year at a camp called by Chandran and others near Koylandi in Kozhikode district. When the participants were returning after the camp, Chandran allegedly grabbed her and touched her inappropriately. District Sessions Judge S Krishna Kumar said, “To attract Section 354A (sexual harassment), physical contact and unwanted and explicit sexual offers must be included. There must be a demand or request for sexual favours. There should be a sexually coloured comment. In another such case, earlier in 2021, the Supreme Court had stayed the Bombay High Court order which held that no ‘skin-to-skin contact’ would not amount to sexual harassment.
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The capitalist patriarchal values spread in the Indian society, which a person who likes justice hates, the same value is ingrained in the minds of today’s judges, and these decisions confirm this. You must have heard the case of sexual harassment of women and other excesses in the past; on the contrary, they are described as filthy or characterless, but in today’s era, how weak the ground of values is, it is easy to get an idea of this incident. It can be assumed that the person sitting in the judge’s chair in the court is stamping the male supremacist mentality. According to a democratic society or individual, eating, drinking, dressing, and religious beliefs, every citizen has his issue. If someone gets agitated by the way someone wears clothes, then it is not the fault of the person wearing the dress, but it shows the meanness and meanness of the other person. It cannot be justified on the pretext of being old or older, as is the case in this case.
The arguments given by the judge are not acceptable. The matter should be investigated properly and the victim should get justice. This profit-centered system does the work of giving fertilizer and water to all types of crimes based on gender and gender, so much cannot be expected from the judiciary of the present system in stopping such crimes, and the end of such crimes is a human-centred one. This will be possible only in an egalitarian society, for this we will have to fight a long battle. My country is changing. On 15th August, Narendra Modi gave a speech on women’s empowerment. After that 11 rapists were released from Gujarat and were sentenced to life imprisonment. Now the judge is commenting on the clothes. The deficiency is in the law and the fault is being traced to the clothing. Are the days really good?
The Constitution of India indeed gives freedom to everyone to speak, wear, read, etc. But every person should take special care of speaking and dressing in public places. Let us also admit that for the first time the court has dared to speak the truth, but when someone does wrong to little girls, who will be held responsible? The court’s decision is correct to some extent, but such a decision encourages sexual exploitation. Harassment is wrong, this right does not belong to any man, but there is a question, Are the clothes that girls are wearing these days right? Such bare clothes of girls should be banned. To increase TRP, and get cheap popularity, new channels harm society by calling even the right decision bad. Ranveer Singh did the same orgy a few days ago, so why was there so much ruckus? Then why society did not see him as a brother or son? We consider daughters as Lakshmi and Goddess of the house, so should the Goddess not save her honour and respect? Nowadays girls are performing semi-naked on Instagram reels. Strict action should be taken against them too.
According to a Thomson Reuters Foundation survey, India is the most dangerous country for sexual violence against women. India’s National Crime Records Bureau has reported millions of crimes against women, including rape. Sexual crimes against women are on the rise due to various reasons. Though there are many laws available to protect women against this kind of crime, they have failed to protect women in India. The recent incidents of sexual harassment in Hyderabad and the Nirbhaya case are a reflection of this. In recent years, New Delhi has earned the title of India’s “rape capital” because of the problem of a sex crime in India. Violence against Indian women is widespread and has deep roots.
In a survey, 68% of respondents said that provocative clothing is an invitation to rape. In response to the recent gang rape incident, a legislator in Rajasthan suggested banning skirts as a uniform for girls in private schools, citing it as a reason for rising cases of sexual assault. Article 21 of our constitution ensures the right to live with dignity for women. Sexual offenses are against the right to live with dignity and a violation of fundamental rights. Harassment in all its forms is one of the root causes of sexual violence. Sexual violence can be prevented through the cooperation of community members at many levels of society in our homes, neighbourhoods, schools, religious places, workplaces, and places. We can all play a role in preventing sexual violence and setting standards of respect, safety, and equality. (The author is a Research Scholar in Political Science, poet, freelance journalist, and columnist)
