London based Director cum producer Leslee Udwin’s 62-minute TV documentary titled “India’s daughter” sends wrong message to India’s sons.
The film does not uphold the dignity of women in India. It only degrades their dignity and depicts them as sexual commodities and women of lesser value. The film failed to promote human rights, gender equality and positive value system.
The statement of Mukesh Singh, an accused in Nirbhaya case ,is inhuman and anti women. He says, a girl is far more responsible for rape than a boy. “Women who go out at night have only themselves to blame if they attract the attention of gangs of male molesters.” He further says, “A woman being raped shouldn’t fight back but remain silent and allow the rape.”
Singh also claims his execution will increase cases of rape- murder. “Now when they rape, they won’t leave the girl like we did. They will kill her,” says he.
Of course Singh is an accused in Nirbhaya case. All of us know that after a trial court in Delhi convicted the four accused of the crime and awarded them the death penalty in September 2013. The Delhi High Court confirmed it in 2014, allowing the them to approach the Apex court.
Last year the Supreme Court had stayed the execution while admitting their appeals till further orders. The convicts are Vinal Sharma (21), Akshay Thakur (29), Mukesh (27), and Pawan Gupta (20).
As a lawyer I am not surprised by such a statement from an accused who awaits death penalty and fighting against it. It’s only his defense that he tries desperately to get out of the death row. Of course his defense has no legal value but demoralizing the value system in Indian society.
I wonder what prompted Leslee to produce this documentary, which in its present form does not project women in positive sense. It does not promote human rights or gender justice. It only encourages the superiority of men over women and maters. It shows women in a poor state and depicts women as of lesser value through the mouth of an accused.
Leslee’s efforts can only bring about degradation of women in India. The producer is encouraging rape in India by airing Singh’s opinion that woman should allow the rapist to rape her peacefully.
The conviction came not only due to the outcry of women in this country but of men in equal numbers or more. No man wants his sister/daughter/mother/wife/ in-laws to be raped in this country. Therefore I am sure men and women of this country equally protest against airing this documentary which has no positive value than the business motive of the producer.
However Leslee claims she was a survivor of a sexual assault at the age of 18. But I am surprised that a woman of her caliber did not bring the accused to book.
“A decent girl won’t roam around at 9 O’clock at night. A girl is far more responsible for rape than a boy. Boy and girl are not equal. House work and housekeeping is for girls, not roaming in discos and bars at night doing wrong things, wearing wrong clothes,” Singh says.
Such dissenting statement can send a wrong signal to the growing sons of our country. Men and women are equal and they have equal rights. There is no separate timings and dress code guaranteed under the Constitution. In fact the Article 15 of the Constitution states, “There shall be no discrimination only on the basis of race, religion, caste, sex and place of birth.”
In the case of Nirbhaya she wore a decent dress. In Delhi unlike in south or any other states, most people, men and women, go out around 9 pm either for marketing or for a party or to pay a visit to his/her friend. Moreover she was not found by the accused in a bar or club but on the road side waiting for transport to reach home.
Again the Indian law or the Constitution does not guarantee any dress code as license for men to rape. It is all the mindset of the person. India knows the literary, social and cultural background of Singh, that we cannot expect a liberal view from such a person.
The producer says she felt profound pity when she met the accused in the prison. She also emphasizes she is against death sentence. Did she mean a media trial by her documentary? What one can infer is that the producer wants to defend the accused as the whole world awaits justice for the victim.
Definitely airing of this documentary shall weaken the case. It can defeat justice. The case is before the Supreme Court and this documentary, if aired, could affect the case. Indians are not out of the grief and trauma of that tragic and most brutal rape that happened on December 16, 2012. We have not finished the days/years of grieving over her death as we do in Indian culture.
Therefore this dehumanizing and degrading documentary should not be allowed to be telecast. Instead the judiciary should speed up the case and bring justice to Nirbhaya. As Indira Jaising rightly said, airing of this film will amount to violation of Article 19(2), of the Constitution, Section 153A of IPC and Section 2© of contempt of Courts Act 1971.
I would add that it also violates Article 21 of the Constitution that guarantees citizens the right to live with human dignity.
I am happy that Delhi police Commissioner B.S Bassi had obtained restraint order from a court against it film’s telecast.. The Information and Broadcasting ministry also issued an advisory to TV channels against showing the documentary.
We, the people of India, should solemnly resolve and protest against the telecast of “India’s Daughter” to protect human dignity in particular the dignity of the daughters of INDIA.
Jai Hind
(Jessy Kurian is an advocate of the Supreme Court. She can be reached at lawyering5@gmail.com)