History is replete with examples where abuse of women has taken place for revenge. Such cases were rampant in Mughal times, for instance. The horrific incident in a video recently emerging from Manipur, reports say, is also the result of a rivalry between two tribes and an act of revenge.
News18 has sifted through some of the most heinous crimes against women in recent times that shook the nation, led to political antagonism, and also created opportunities for some.
BHANWARI DEVI RAPE CASE
This incident which took place in a small village near Jaipur, in 1992 resulted in guidelines being framed by the Supreme Court for sexual harassment in the workplace (also called the Vishaka Guidelines). Bhanwari was raped at dusk while she was working with her husband in the field. Two attackers pinned down her husband, while others took turns to sexually assault her. Her crime – she was advocating against child marriage which was rampant in parts of Rajasthan. Bhanwari Devi belonged to a low-caste potter family, her rapists were powerful Gujjars, who were acquitted. One bizarre reason given was village had men who were above 60 years of age and were not capable of rape.
KATHUA CASE
The rape and murder of 8-year-old Asifa in 2018 still remain etched in memory and caused much turmoil in Jammu. This was at a time when the PDP-BJP government was in power in J&K. What became a turnaround moment in the politics of what was then a state was that this gave a chance to Mehbooba Mufti to finally assert herself vis-à-vis the BJP. She was earlier accused of being subservient to the saffron party in the alliance. Under pressure from her, two ministers of the government had to step down after they backed a rally organised in support of the accused.
NIRBHAYA CASE
This was a case that triggered nationwide revulsion. A young girl was fatally raped in the national capital while she was travelling in a bus with her male friend on a winter night in 2012. It also led to the tightening of the anti-rape law and triggered a debate on the Juvenile Justice Act, as one of the perpetrators was a minor. The Nirbhaya episode happened when the UPA was in power and Sheila Dikshit was Delhi’s chief minister. There were street protests. The central government, which faced flak, swung into action and ensured the best medical treatment for her, even sending her to Singapore, where she died. As the trial continued, the BJP and the AAP government in Delhi were embroiled in a slugfest, till finally the accused were punished.
HATHRAS CASE
The “rape” of a Dalit girl in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras and the acquittal of the accused raised the political temperatures in the state in 2020. It also gave a political edge to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra who with her brother Rahul Gandhi decided to drive down to Hathras. She was stopped at the Delhi-Noida border and jostled with the police. The Congress gave her the tagline of “Durga” as images of Priyanka being pushed around by the UP police came out. It also gave her the slogan of “Ladki hun, lad sakti hun” for the UP polls. It didn’t help her though as the Congress lost badly in the state. But for the party, a leader was born.
These are just a few instances when rape events shocked the nation and made people question those in power. Despite the strengthened rape laws, not much seems to have changed on the ground. Women still continue to be used to score points.
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