Shootout at Hyderabad - An Eye Opener and Hyderabad Encounter Right or Wrong for India

November 27, 2019, Dr. Disha, a young veterinary doctor and a Hyderabad resident was abducted, raped and murdered. The very next day her body was recovered near Hyderabad-Bengaluru highway. On November 29, 2019, Cyberabad police nabbed four persons namely – Md. Arif, Jollu Naveen, Jollu Siva, and Ch.Chennakeshavulu, a native of Narayanpet. After 5-6 days of police remand, they were taken on the crime spot for scene reconstruction and shot out to death by the police. The police are claiming that in a bid to self-defense they had to encounter them.

This is the true consequences of Dr. Disha’s brutal rape and murder. Dr. Disha was gone and so are rapists. But, the entire sequence has left so many questions in front of us.

Is our country so unsafe that a lady can’t roam freely?

Is walking in the night so deadly for an Indian Woman?

Is a woman not secure at home even?

Can a woman travel alone across the region?

Why rapists don’t afraid of law and order? 

Why our system is so impotent to heinous crimes like rape?

Does our judicial system seek an overhaul?

Is an encounter with the rapist the only solution?

And, the questions are endless……..

Looking at the history of rape-murder mysteries in India, we find that the numbers of rape are mind-shutting. Today, every hour 4 incidents of rape take place in India.

So it comes to 96 a day  

2880 in a month and

34560 in a year

During a report of NCRB 2013, it is outlined that 98% of the rape incidences happened where the rapist knew the victim in advance. However, these are incidents that are reported. The real figure would be more shocking as we know that India lives in villages and sub-urban areas where people even don’t wish to see the police then how come this underprivileged public go for an FIR. 

Probably, the first sensational incident of rape took place in Mumbai. A 25-year-old Mumbai nurse Aruna Shanbaug was strangled in the chains by a cleaner, raped and left to die. This incidence took place on November 27, 1973. The irony was that the accused had not been charged with rape case and after 7 years he became set free to lead his remaining life. 

In 1996, Suyanelli a 16 years old school girl of Kerla abduction and rape grabbed the country’s attention where she had been raped on the false promise of marriage.

In 2012, Nirbhaya a 23 years old girl was beaten, gang-raped on a private bus in Delhi. This is the most debated and infamous rape case in India which shocked Indians to a higher degree. Meanwhile, all four accused were awarded the death penalty.

In 2017, the heinous Unnao rape case came into the light where a 17 years old girl was tortured and raped. But, the case is so complex that police are still looking for solid evidence to prove it in the court.  

In 2018, Asifa Bano, an 8-year-old-girl was abducted, raped and murdered in Kathua in J&K jolted the entire nation. The nation-wide agitation and protests took place and police arrested 7 persons in this connection of that one acquitted and 6 got punishment by the court but not the death penalty.

The list is infinite……

Washington Post said that India is the most dangerous place for women in the world.

Personally, I don’t believe so. India’s respect for women is world-famous. In fact, this is India where women are worshipped. 

So what’s going wrong that such incidents are taking place?

Social Change:

No doubt, with an exposure to western culture, our cultural values and beliefs are on a decline. Our society is developing in such a way where we neither understand western systems properly nor our own. We see that it is getting westernize everything and in such an environment our social institutions got missed. Since inception, our society always believe in ‘WomenFirst’ dictum. In every sphere of our life women have been at the top of attention.

Economic Insufficiency:

India is mostly a poor country. People don’t have timely meal and clothes. Economic inequality is on the rise here. The wealthy people have all the powers to bend and break the system from anywhere. In such a situation, it’s not beyond imagination that such people can coax a poor girl and create a consequence. Due to poverty, we have seen that people sell their own child for slavery, rape and, murder.

Sexual Inconsistency:

India is a very conservative country when it comes to sex knowledge and behavior. People perceive it as an undercover notion as per their intrinsic traits. On the other hand, the outer world compels them to act foolishly as far as sexual behavior is concerned. These all happenings mess them up as not to discriminate between right and wrong.

Educational Shortfall:

There is a big difference between an educated and a literate. Educated signifies a well-groomed intellectual body whereas literate indicates a person who can read and write. India is even falling behind literacy rate where comes the education? We need a better educational infrastructure now with an emphasis on curriculum over Indian traditions and morality.

The Role of Media:

It is no doubt that with the easily available media nowadays, India is progressing very fast in both directions. One goes up and one goes down. The going up numbers are fewer than the going down numbers due to the lack of proper education. The entertainment industry has lost its moral to churn out money and it’s a global phenomenon. Nudity, compelling scene creation, wicked videos are the most common available hazards today. Sometimes, imagination of the future of upcoming generations really seems dark and fearful.  

The Role of our Constitution:

Our constitution says, “Ninety-nine culprit can be left but one innocent should not be punished.” Why?

Is it not better to say that everyone will be brought to justice?

Basically, our constitution is lagging behind timeliness. There is no guideline to dispose of the case in a stipulated time frame. Specially, IPC needs an overhaul over timeliness. We often see that a case takes enormous time and effort to be completed. This is not only an injustice but suffering for the victim too.

The Role of our Judicial System:

A report reveals that despite millions of millions of pending cases, the High Courts of India have 414 vacant seats. We can imagine what is happening in the lower courts. And too, this is for judges. What about other judicial bodies? Fast track courts and special courts are also not sufficient to dispose of the cases fast. Lack of audio-visual courts is one of the main reasons behind it.

The Role of Police and Administration:

The role of our police force and administration is vital to stop the heinous crimes like rape and murder. In fact, the police force is also trailing behind technology and resources. Moreover, they are now been considered as the power of the government rather than enjoying a free status. Corrupt politicians often use them to play the dirty cards. Coordination between police and administration is very weak here. CID once considered as a prominent investigation agency is now a dead like.

The Role of Politics & Politicians:

Not all but most of the Indian politicians come from a muscular background or at least keep muscle for the times. Many of them have criminal backgrounds too. Many of them are illiterate and thoughtless also. They just do politics for power and position. They possess a very subtle intention of human well-being. In such a scenario, imagining fair investigation and fair judgment is a daydream. The Indian parliament affairs are not meant for public welfare rather to play a blame game and criticize.

Personally, I believe that riding two horses at a time will leave us nowhere. If we are bound to follow the western culture and its pleasure, at the same time we should stand courageously to face its outcome. Just trying to glamorize ourselves in the shadow of western culture is not a solution. We have to educate our men about the intricacies of this. Or, we can emphasize on our prestigious Indian culture which is still running in our veins. Though it is maligned by mix-up and match but it can be revived at the same time.

This is not only the question of Dr. Disha, Nirbhaya and Asifa, but also this is a question of our future directions. Where we are born to go and where are we heading towards? We must concentrate on this otherwise today Hyderabad happened, tomorrow something else. It is not stoppable by an encounter but it can be stopped by adopting measures and performing a system overhaul.