The return of the 'moral' police

I remember reading from my Social Studies book back in school that the Indian Constitution declared India a sovereign, secular, socialist republic which guaranteed justice, equality, liberty and integrity for all its citizens. I might not have taken it quite seriously back in the seventh standard, yet I remember this statement 7 years after I heard it, so it must have meant something to me back then, as I thought it did now. But turn on the news today, and all the pride and conviction withers away and I am left plainly disappointed. Recently, the Sri Ram Sena workers rushed into a pub and beat up girls for behaving in an “obscene manner”. When questioned about this, their leader told a prominent news channel that perhaps the manner in which his men had taken action was wrong, but he wanted to know why no one was looking at their message.

What message, you ask? Viciously attacking women is pardonable as long as it is for the greater good. I am sure you are as glad as I am that the perpetrators of this vile act have got what they deserved, going to a bar, drinking and sitting down with the opposite sex like that, that too wearing jeans. Perhaps, it would have been ok had they been in a saree. Perhaps not.

Of course, the men indulging in similar ‘distasteful’ behaviour were barely harmed. Or maybe they were and it wasn’t covered enough by the media. Who knows. But the bottom line is, everyone – the media, the politicians, the attacking party and the victims alike are focussing on the women who were involved. And that is because this isn’t the first or second act of blatant discrimination. I’m sure there are a host of reasons people will spew out for why it’s a different situation for men, and honestly I am sick of hearing or even talking about them.

So what is this moral behaviour and decency they talk about? Beating up people who go against your principles of right and wrong? Destroying property in the name of your cultural integrity? This wasn’t what the leaders of our country envisioned when they said equality, justice and tolerance. Or maybe I am wrong, since there are people out there redefining what Indian culture is and is not.

So, rejoice, we have a new clan of people taking the law into their own hands and deciding what is good for the country. Don’t you feel so much safer?