Death doesn't serve as deterrence, a painful
limping life would.
I received an assorted mix of reactions-
threats and compliments - from different parts of India after protesting that
we stained our hands by hanging Kasab.. I wish to make one thing clear. I am no
relative of Kasab nor did I study with him. Me empathizing with him was only to
give you an insight with the ideology of those who schooled him. One lady typed
me a deadly letter loaded with disgust and condemnation and asked me if I would
have said the same if I had lost my family. My answer is yes! Because
killing the murderer wouldn't bring them back to me. Killing him wouldn't allow
me to embrace my dead dad or eat food cooked by my dead mom. The dead do not
need justice; they only need us to be happy. So, if killing makes you happy,
then so be it.
I
stand by my point of view that capital punishment is not an option for
deterring a terrorist and for that reason even a rapist. Someone who commits
such a gruesome crime doesn't worry about being arrested or rather doesn't plan
on getting caught. Such a person is either brain washed or insanely spontaneous
and erratic. Death doesn't scare emotionally unstable or morally insensitive
personalities. Death is not deterrence,
it is a subjective concept. When we read about people who die of road
accidents, does that stop us from riding fast? May be it plays on our mind for
a few hours or days, but then unconsciously we are back to our wild side. How
many people use a head-gear for safety? Most use it to prevent the fine.
A
better deterrence would be a painful life that serves as a witness to
anti-social characters. A dead man can't tell you to stop sinning but someone
limping in limbo can. Castrate the rapist in public and sentence him to life
imprisonment where he would have to earn his every meal. I feel the testimony
of a person alive and suffering is a much scarier than a momentary sight of a
person hanging from the gallows. Some say that would stooping as low as the
criminal himself, but then again does he have the right to possess that energy
if he cannot channel it constructively.
America witnessed an unfortunate
massacre a few weeks back, but there were no reports of any violent riots or
protests. The difference lay in the prompt and emotionally loaded speech by
President Obama, on the very same day of the event; where he consoled the
mourning and instilled courage in the survivors to move on. The only people to
blame for the protests turning violent are the national leaders who cowardly
sat silent for weeks. It would have been a different story if our Prime
Minister had empathized immediately with the victim and been the strength for
an insecure nation.
With
all due respect to the economist and humanitarian in him; as a leader and a role
model, Manmohan Singh cuts a sorry image of a constipated hen-pecked victim
himself. If it took him 7 days to write that unconvincing speech, the justice
he promises will never see the day. Then again, it was better some leaders
never opened their mouths, like the son of the president, who accused the
protesters of lighting candles for two-minutes of 'pink' fame. He is a shame to
every man and a threat to every woman, and therefore doesn't deserve to be in
Parliament anymore for his sick, pathetic state of mind. In fact, the first
family of India should consider sending him for therapy because his statements
are those of a potential rapist. More than anything else our politicians today
should be educated on how to zip it up and not express their insensitive,
sadistic remarks to the world.
Shushma
Swaraj demanded a special parliamentary session to revise the stance on death
penalty but the congress say it is not necessary. Surely it is not necessary,
will a Government herding rape-accused parliamentarians amend a law where they
will be sent to the gallows? The first issue we need to address is our dignity
as human beings - the value we give to our vote. There are dozens of
politicians sitting in the parliament with criminal cases of rape, molestation
and continue to pass obnoxious sexist remarks on women. One look at them and
their glossy eyes and evil smirk reminds of the man-eater crocodiles on the
National Geographic; it would be better we voted for an animal than for a
cannibal.
Some
narcissistic politicians are of the opinion that women shouldn't use mobiles or
drink in public. How many of these idiots have ever thought of banning an
'item- number' in bollywood? Producers project the girl next door character as
a sex object and the actresses who do engage in this public seduction are the
ones condemning rape. The audience- that these 'sheelas' and 'munnis'
cater to – consist of impressionable uneducated people who interpret everything
at face value. The censor board should get tough on concepts in cinema and draw
the line between fun and filth. It is not about branding the movie 'A' anymore;
chop the scene completely and if that spoils the plot, then ban the movie!
The
public outrage on the streets of Delhi and elsewhere was different because it
wasn't fabricated or designed by money. It was as spontaneous and brash as the
crime itself. The youngsters were angry, frustrated and disgusted with the way
the Government has treated the scenario. The roadside whisper claims that many
of those infuriated protesters who shouted for justice, at some time in their
past or future, have and will fantasize about a stranger woman. Why the farce
then? Could it be an unconscious psychological uprising against the evil within
oneself – a confession that there is a dark side to everyone, but there is also
a sincere effort to fight this evil?
The
hypocrisy of our chauvinist politicians has instigated a revolution. The
protests might have been unprecedented but it wasn't surprising; we Indians
have suddenly growing blood thirsty after the recent execution. This is a very
sensitive time not only because the Government has to react rationally to the
crowds demands but also make sure that our civilization doesn't turn barbarous.
Please
note : – next time you plan to launch a meaningful protest, make sure that fool
Ramdev isn't around. He has lived up to his reputation of being a rowdy
gate-crashing maniac, ruining the seriousness and honesty of a protest.
-JONATHAN
RODRIGUES
(Student
of criminology & forensics, KUD. Email: jonahdreams25@gmail.com /
blog: w.w.w.theroadsiderogue.blogspot.in
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