Lucknow: It is 10.30 am and most of the shops in Naka Hindola market — known as the grey market for electronic goods in Lucknow — are yet to open. Inside a dusty lane, a man peeps inside a partially lifted shutter and says, “Paanch local film chahiye — achche wale. Sham ko aaunga” (I need five local films—will come in the evening), and walks off.
The “local films” he is referring to are real-life rape videos that are now the fastest selling commodities in this market. These rape videos are sold clandestinely only to known customers in blank covers. To make the business more discreet, most of these videos are sold in USB pen drives.
Rapes are now video recorded not just to blackmail the victim, but also because it is a lucrative commodity that can be sold many times over.
The harrowing business is flourishing right under the nose of the police — the Nkaa Hindola police station is barely 500 metres away from these shops — and sources claim that the cops receive a hefty amount on a monthly basis for ignoring the business.
Rakesh (name changed), who runs the sleaze business explains, “The days of pirated films are over. It is now the rape videos that are in demand. The trend of filming a rape is gaining ground and most of these are cases of gangrapes. The duration is anything between 10 minutes to 30 minutes and the video clip is sold for anything between Rs 300 to Rs 500, depending on how explicit it is”. These videos are made available to those in the business of selling by their agents in various cities.
“Our men buy these videos for Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 and we ‘clean up’ the clips before putting them out in the market. The clean up means that the faces of the rapists are blurred, but the victim’s face is not. Those that have an audio track (read screams) are more expensive,” said Rakesh. He even admitted that there is a possibility of this business actually encouraging gangrapes.
Porn is passé. Real-life crime is the rage. The demand for these clips has grown to such an extent that buyers are coming from adjoining states like Madhya Pradesh and Bihar with bulk orders. Sadistic pleasure, then, is not restricted to Uttar Pradesh.
Sellers in Lucknow claim to sell 100 to 200 “local films” every day.
Those in the business say that their customers are mostly young boys and students and also those with political links, which further boosts and legitimises their “business”.
With the state government providing free Wi-Fi at most public places, the business has received an impetus. And the complicity of police is being bought.
Sellers of rape videos claim that they give a fixed amount of money to the cops every month, which allows them to conduct their business smoothly. The cops, however, feign complete ignorance about the business.
A senior police official of the rank of ADG, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, “Now you know why certain police stations are much sought after by the cops — it is the money that comes in. In more than 50 per cent of rape cases, the victims complain that the act was filmed by the accused, but the police never register the case under IT Act.”
It is clear that there is a nexus which cannot be easily broken”.
