A team of leaders and activists of AIPWA and AISA visited
Haryana on 12-13 October, to investigate the alarming spate of rape cases in
the state. The team comprised of AIPWA National Secretary Kavita Krishnan, JNU
Students’ Union Councillor Anubhuti Bara, and AISA activists from Delhi
University, Prerna and Saurabh Naruka. The team was accompanied by Comrade Prem
Singh Gehlawat, in-charge of the CPI(ML) for Haryana.
Findings
and observations of the team are as follows:
Dabra
Case
Reshma
(name changed), aged 16 years, belonging to Dalit community (Chamar) was
gangraped by 8 persons on September 9, 2012 near Dabra village in Hisar
district.
Rape
and Resistance – A Survivor’s Account
“On
September 9, I was on the way to my grandmother’s (and maternal uncle’s) home
in Hisar town, around 3 pm, when I was dragged into a car in which there were 8
men, and taken to a deserted place near a tube-well. They made phone calls
after which four more arrived on bikes. They (12 in all) all raped me, and
filmed the act. They also threatened me that they would kill me and attack my
family if I said anything. They forced me to swallow a pill, after which I
became drowsy. When I came to, I came to the main road, hitched a lift on a passing
bike and returned home.
I
said nothing for nearly 10 days. My mother and I went to stay at my
grandmother’s place on 11th. On 18th, my father came
there and my parents both began asking me what the matter was. They had noticed
that I was silent and depressed. Eventually I broke down and told them. My
father then wanted to take me to the thana to file a complaint, but for some
reason – hesitation or some pressure, I don’t know why – did not do that.
He
left the house and went with my mother to the house of Randeep Surjewala’s
mother-in-law (Surjewala is a Congress MLA and Industries Minister in the
Haryana Govt), where he (my father) worked as a gardener. I heard that her security
guard (associated with Punjab Police) showed my father the video of my rape. My
father then sent my mother back to my grandmother’s home. And he then took
poison and committed suicide.
On
the same day, we went and filed an FIR. Dalit leaders with the help of
villagers held a candle light protest, demanding action by the police. We said
that we will hold a dharna and refuse to accept my father’s body for last
rites, till the police arrests the accused. The dharna began on 19th.
One of the accused is the nephew of the former MLA (elected from INLD), Puran
Singh, who stays in the same village. Eventually we called off the dharna on 23rd,
after the police made the first arrest.
I
was shown photographs, and I made a positive identification of one of the
rapists, and was unsure about another. But the police took the latter into
remand, and beat that poor chap up badly, but did not take the one I had
positively identified, into remand, though they did keep him in custody. Now,
however, 8 of the accused have been arrested. The Test Identification Parade
has not yet taken place, so I cannot say whether these 8 are indeed the
culprits.
Since
most of the accused are from the Jat community, the Sarpanch and other
influential Jats in the village are protecting them. They even tried, through
someone, to try to offer me Rs 2 crore to withdraw the case.
The
accused live in the same village, in the area where the Jats live. Many of the
accused have a criminal background. One of them is accused of killing a Jay
boy, and a Chamar (Dalit) boy. Other rapes have occurred, many of them with
Dalit girls, at the same spot. But Dalits work under Jats, and so are scared or
reluctant to speak out.
The
family of the Chamar boy who was brutally murdered have come forward to help
us.
Where
Jats are accused of rape, there are many powerful people to protect them. When
Dalits rape someone from the Jat community, the entire Dalit community would be
attacked. In our own village, a Dalit youth who fell in love with a Jat girl
was killed. The girl was told to invite him home since her family had agreed to
the marriage; they packed the girl off somewhere and killed the Dalit
youth.
Sonia
Gandhi came to Haryana to visit the family of a rape victim. The media kept
asking me that day – why didn’t she come here? How can I answer that – would
she phone me to let me know the reason?! The fact is that she won’t come here
for fear of antagonising the Jat vote for the Congress.
The
Government has promised my brother a job – but they are offering him a job that
is not permanent.
I
would like to go to school – but I feel I can’t go to the same school. I guess
I will join a school that is further away.
Persistent
Fear
Pushpa
Barad and her daughter Sunita Barad (Reshma’s neighbours), told us that there
are only three lanes in the village where Chamars live. There are about 500 Jat
households, and 300 Dalit households(including Chamar, Dhanak and other Dalit communities.)
So
the Chamars and other Dalits feel very vulnerable. Since the gang-rape, Sunita
said she has stopped attending the training classes (towards a job) that she
had enrolled for. The reason is that her brother was threatened by Jat men that
his sister would not be safe as long as Reshma persisted in her case. Other
Dalit girls too are scared to go to school.
There
is a 24-hour police watch around Reshma’s house – but the rest of the Dalit
community also seek police protection.
Pushpa
told us that the former MLA Puran Singh family is quite influential locally,
and the daughter of OmPrakash Chautala has also been married in their family.
Local
Congress MLA Ram Niwas visited the victim family but showed his helplessness
when he said that he can’t do much as he is still only ‘under training’!
Arrests
of the Accused
Baljit,
one of the accused, was arrested on September 23. We were told that this arrest
took place when a girl student from the Jat community spotted him on a bus and
tipped off the police. The police too confirmed this.
Several
others among the accused were picked up from Ranikhet, Uttarakhand. The 8 now
arrested have been apprehended with the help of villagers, some of them
Jats.
The
Sarpanch
The
Sarpanch of the village is Mayawati Kaliravana, a woman, but her husband Inder
is the one who goes by the title of Sarpanch. She (Mayawati) says she visited
the rape survivor, but Inder admitted that while he had met her relatives, he
had not actually met the survivor.
Inder
denied that any help or protection was being given to the accused. He said that
the accused were criminals, and had misbehaved with Jat girls just as well.
Involvement
of Non-Jat Accused
Not
all the accused in the case are from the Jat community. Many we spoke to suggested
that the rape survivor had gone to the spot of the rape, of her own accord,
with a man on a two-wheeler. This man, they said, is from the ‘Chhippi’
(tailor) community and is married and has children. The Sarpanch’s husband
Inder said this man has a mobile phone shop, and helped make the MMS.
We
must stress, though, that none we spoke to denied that the gang-rape occurred
or that the Jat boys were responsible for the gang-rape.
The
SP, however, said that this man from the Chippi community was a chemist, and
had given the girl a contraceptive pill. When he and the girl emerged from the
shack at the tube-well, they were surrounded by the Jat boys who had spotted
them, roughed up the girl’s companion and raped her. According to the police,
the accused had taken photographs of the girl at the time of the incident, but
had not made or circulated an MMS. These photographs, though deleted from the
phones of the accused, had been recovered through technology. They showed the
girl weeping, and the faces of several of the accused, and were therefore
valuable evidence. The man from the Chippi community too has been
arrested.
Was
this, then, a caste crime?
The
police seem to believe, based on the above version, that the gang-rape was of
an opportunist rather than a pre-planned nature. Therefore, they seem to assume
that the gang-rape should not be seen as a crime against Dalits.
It
is true that a girl of any other community in the same situation, too might be
vulnerable to rape. But what cannot be ignored is that these were Jat youth
from the same village – who recognised Reshma as a Dalit girl from their
village. Was this not a factor in emboldening them to rape, confident of their
impunity as members of the dominant community. Their confidence that they could
terrorise her into silence, surely arose not only from the gendered and
patriarchal notion of ‘shame’ imposed on her, but also on the fact that she was
a Dalit who would think many times before daring to take on Jats.
Moreover,
the fear and insecurity of the Dalit community following the gang-rape is
palpable.
What
if it is true that a married man from the backward Chippi community took Reshma
along to the deserted spot with her consent? If true, this fact would in no way
take away from the horrific crime of gang-rape that was committed by the other
men – all Jats.
Hence,
the SC/ST Act must be invoked in this case.
Conflicting
Versions?
We
hold that there is no substantial conflict in the versions of the incident
regarding the actual gang-rape.
If
(as has been suggested by some) the rape survivor has been reluctant to admit
that she voluntarily accompanied a man to the spot, that is all too understandable.
She would fear the social consequences of such an admission; the speculations
about her morality that would follow; she would fear that her allegations of
gang-rape would be questioned; and she might also not want to implicate the man
with whom she had been friendly.
Can
one blame her? She has seen the ruling party (Congress) spokesperson from her
district say that 90% rape cases are consensual. Women in our society are told
that if you agree to sex or even friendships with men before or outside
marriage, why do you object to rape?
Social
inhibitions of the rape survivor regarding admitting to a relationship, must
not be made a pretext to undermine the credibility of her allegation of
gang-rape.
Pressures
on the Survivor?
We
learnt that the rape survivor had named some of the accused in the FIR, but in
her statement before a magistrate, she failed to name any of the accused.
There
are indications of pressures on the survivor, not only from influential members
of the dominant community as well as vested political interests from her own
community. Some accounts suggested that the latter too were attempting to make
political capital from the incident, while tacitly weakening the case by
misguiding the survivor.
Our
demands:
1.
The rape survivor is especially
courageous and brave. All efforts must be made to ensure that the Government
backs her aspirations for education, and also ensures a job for her, not just
for her brother.
2.
Every effort must be made by
the authorities to ensure protection and support for the rape survivor, to
ensure that she does not come under any pressure, inducement, or advice by
vested interests to ‘compromise’.
3.
The case must be fast-tracked,
since the more time passes, the more scope there is for the accused to bring
pressure on the victim.
4.
Rehabilitation for the family
and schooling and higher education for the survivor be arranged as per their
wishes
Banwasa
Case
Naveena
(name changed), a girl belonging to landless ‘Dhanak’ (Dalit Community) was
gang raped by four persons on Sep 26, 2012. She was 18 years old and had been
married just three months back.
Her
father Karmaji is a ‘rajmistri’ with five siblings-3 sisters and 2 brothers. At
the time of the incident, she was at her paternal house in Banwasa village of
Gohana tehsil of Sonipat district.
The
incident
Naveena
was alone at her parental home when she received a message from her cousin
Rambatheri that her husband is waiting for her at Gohana bus. Rambatheri
apparently passed on the message given on phone by Shravan (one of the
accused). Naveena’s brother, in the course of the conversation, later said that
the call had in fact been made to Naveena’s bhabhi Malti.
Falling
in the trap she left for Gohana around 10 am on September 26, not to return for
next two days. Her brother Gurmit Singh returned from his school at 2 pm when
he found that Sunila was not at home after which he spread the word. The worried
family made calls to relatives enquiring about her, including to her husband
Sunil, staying at Adiyana village of Panipat district, who said she had not
returned to his home.
They
were not able to trace Naveena on September 27 and 28, after which they informed
the police on September 29. In the meantime, Naveena was abducted in a car in
broad daylight from Gohana bus stand by the four accused. They took her to
Hartadi in Panipat district where she was gangraped for two days.
The
Village Sarpanch who belongs to same community as Naveena assisted the family
in tracking her. The police, taking the lead from Shravan’s mobile number,
nabbed the culprits on September 29.
Three
of the accused belongs to same ‘Dhanak’ community. The fourth accused of
Sikandara Manjara village belongs to Brahmin community.
We
had gone in the daytime, so Naveena was away working in the fields. We were
unable to meet her in spite of our efforts, so many unanswered questions remain
about the incident.
Our
Demands:
Protection
to the rape survivor, speedy trial, and punishment for those identified by the
survivor as the rapists.
Sachhakheda
case
Sharmila,
aged 16 years, committed suicide after being raped by Pradeep and Naveen in
broad day light on Oct 6, 2012. The accused were assisted in the crime by
Manoj, Meenu (Manoj’s wife) and Sanjeev.
The
victim as well as the accused belongs to same Balmiki community.
The
Incident
While
Sharmila was returning home she was dragged into Manoj’s house, near her own
house, by one of the accused, Pradeep. While she was being raped Manoj, Meenu
and Sanjeev kept guard.
After
the incident the girl later went to her uncle house nearby, poured kerosene on
her body and immolated herself. On hearing her screams, the neighbours rushed
to the spot and informed the police.
She
was taken to Narwana Hospital in police van and was referred to Rohtak
hospital. Her statement was recorded by the Magistrate only after much
persuasion and delay, before she succumbed to her injuries at the emergency
ward of the hospital.
One
of the accused Manoj is related to the sitting MLA Prithvi Singh of INLD of
Narwana constituency. After the initial lapse the police was able to nab all
the accused in the next two days. However, Sharmila’s family was apprehensive
that Manoj might escape punishment.
The
Sarpanch of Saccha Kheda village, Nirmala, was initially reluctant to discuss
the case, leaving it to her husband Ram Bhagat to do the talking. Eventually
they both adopted the refrain, “The guilty should be punished but the innocent
should not face unjust action,” indicating that in their view Manoj and Meenu
are being unjustly accused. But they could not explain what motive Sharmila’s
family had to level false accusations on anyone. The Sarpanch’s home had
several large photographs and displays dedicated to the Chautala family and the
INLD.
As
per some news reports the accused have also made advances earlier on Sharmila
which was duly informed to the police but no action was taken.
Our
Demands
1.
The rapists, as well as those
who enabled the rape by preventing the victim’s escape, must be punished
severely.
2.
Measures must be taken to
prevent any of the accused from taking refuge behind political protection.
General
Observations and Conclusions
The
spate of rape cases in Haryana is cause enough for concern. The CM, Bhoopinder
Hooda, has said there is nothing alarming about these incidents since they are
not unique to Haryana. Sonia Gandhi too has said that the Haryana Government
cannot be held responsible for the rapes.
However,
it is impossible to deny that the Government, as well as the entire ruling
establishment including the ruling party and the main Opposition party, are
deeply culpable for the rising instances of rapes and other crimes against
women.
Dharmveer
Goyat, one of the spokespersons for the ruling Congress, has declared that 90%
of rapes are consensual. In other words, most rape complainants are liars, in
his view.
Phool
Chand Mulana, Chief of Haryana’s ruling party, the Congress, declared that the
rapes are a conspiracy against the Government.
Khap
panchayat leaders and former Haryana CM Om Prakash Chautala proposed child
marriage as a solution to prevent rape. ‘Child marriage’ – i.e marriage before
the age of 16 – is something the khap panchayats have long been demanding.
Because marriage in childhood can help achieve their objective of preventing
self-choice marriages – that they otherwise seek to achieve through threats of
violence and ‘honour’ killings. When Haryana DGP R S Dalal said parents need to
keep an eye on the activities of their children, he too is advocating greater
surveillance – mainly on the mobility of young girls.
Rape
itself is one way of maintaining patriarchal and caste domination through
terror. And these reactionary ‘solutions’ for rape only seek to strengthen the
patriarchal stranglehold on women.
The
fact is that casteist and patriarchal forces are feeling emboldened because
they feel that the Haryana Government and the police are with them. The
Government and police have time and again protected the perpetrators of ‘honour
crimes’ and atrocities against dalits be it at Bhagana, Mirchhpur, or Gohana.
And this is undoubtedly a factor in the increasing rapes and other forms of
violence on women.
We
hear praise from some quarters nowadays for the Haryana Government’s efforts to
campaign against sex-selective abortion by roping in the khap panchayats. The
khap panchayats have also offered their services in preventing and punishing
rape – suggesting that social boycott of rapists would be a deterrent. We
believe that such initiatives are dishonest and misleading. Violence against
women – be it rape, ‘honour’ crimes or sex-selective abortion - can be resisted
and curbed only by measures that safeguard and promote women’s equality and
rights and by struggles against patriarchal forces, attitudes, and structures. The
solution to crimes against women cannot come from those very patriarchal forces
that are the bulwark of sexist and misogynist attitudes.
Rather
than claiming to rope in khap panchayats to fight crimes on women, the Haryana
Government ought rather to heed the demands of women’s groups, act firmly
against the anti-constitutional activities of khap panchayats; and come down
hard on any instances of collusion between police forces and khap panchayats or
others accused of crimes against women and Dalits.
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