The horror returns

Another horrific gangrape incident, this time in the heart of Mumbai, is a chilling reminder that nothing has really changed in this country since the violent crime against a 23-year-old woman in Delhi sparked nationwide outrage like never before last December. It’s an insult to India’s womanhood that they are still treated in this way by the senseless sexual urge of men who have got emboldened more than ever to take out their lust in the manner of animals. It’s not as if society has been sitting idle since the Delhi gangrape whipped up national revulsion. The J.S. Verma Committee did its work diligently, and stiffer punishment is on the cards for rapists. But, beyond stricter laws and assiduous hunting down of rapists, what we need is a national awakening. It may take years for attitudes to change, but change is vital if society is ever to let women live in peace and dignity. When the gangrape had occurred on a moving bus in Delhi, a lot of sceptics had tried to explain it away by noting that the safety and security of women was never a given in the nation’s capital. But has Mumbai, the city that never sleeps, proved any better in safeguarding women Is no city safe for one-half of India’s population This incident in a disused mill in Mumbai is a terrible blot on the men of India, who are the ones who must show their resolve to ensure that this pandemic is stopped, once and for all.