All India Radio
Atrocities Against Women in Kerala
A Dalit girl was recently raped and murdered in what is known as the most developed state of India, Kerala. The incident has bought the callousness of police in dealing with gender violence. The article deals with the issue associated with the violence against women and some preventive measures that should be taken to avoid such future incidents.
Kerala, which ranks highest in the Human development indices, has achieved numerous strides in all aspect of human development. Even the UN came forward in declaring Kerala as the most developed region in India. Despite all such positive notes that we hear about the state, the recent rape and murder is a black mark not only on the establishments but to the very commitment of our founding fathers to ensure equal rights to women in par with men.
The crime which happened on a broad day light in the house of a victim is literally shocking. The fact that the girl’s family had approached the police for last couple of months regarding the physiological abuse that they are undergoing and the complete police inaction against the offenders has only shown the lack of sensitization in acting against the offenders.
Prevalence of patriarchal mindset among the people, lack of sensitization, general lawlessness, inefficient functioning of police, a sense of antagonism against Dalits has all added to the problem and poor, hapless families are bearing the brunt of such incidents.
Even though the government has started one stop centre to address all the issues associated with the women who have undergone some form of sexual violence is poorly or functioning inadequately.
The presence of Violence and disrespecting the women in a society is only a manifestation of prevalence of patriarchy and narrow mindedness. Women are making their mark equally in all spheres of life. Nevertheless the situation has improved many folds compared to pre colonial era, discrete incidents like these in Kerala is only a reminder of the job of assuring women a life of dignity and respect.
Schools and parents have a huge role to play in delving in to ideas of respecting and sensitizing women issues. There is a need to understand that the development merely does not mean growth and GDP numbers but also a creation of a healthy society free of prejudices and inequality. A lot needs to be done on part in reforming the police force and also to increase the number of women in police, so that the male dominated force can be more sensible when it comes to dealing with gender abuse.
