In India, rapes and molestations are quite common and frequent, so much so, when I heard about the case of a 14 year old girl filed complaint against a 73 year old man, I just flipped out the channel, ignoring yet another molestation case. Happens each hour of the day, what is new in them?
Although am bit amazed always that I am never shocked or surprised, over such happenings, I have long concluded these news as an Indian way of life. Rapes and molestations have become a part of the Indian Psychi now. Guess what, we may be after all a very pervert society.
So, why am I writing about this case, other than waking up my friends in the society to do something? This case is particularly queer.
A guardian of a 14 year old, Bhutanese girl files a complaint of molestation against ML Brite, a senior citizen of 73 years age and the girl's school principal. Naturally, the old man has denied it but interesting facts are coming out in this case like
1) The girl turns out not to be Bhutanese but Nepalese. Why this confusion of ethnicity, I wonder?
2) Let's suppose, that school authorities are right. The man is innocent. Then why did he run away, the moment, a case of sexual harassment was filed against him?
3) The most bizarre thing in this whole episode is the girl's hostel. 17 girls lived in the girls hostel that was actually, Mr. Brite's own residence. So they all lived with him. In all schools and colleges and universities, good or bad, Indian or foreign, a code of conduct or a policy or a set of rules are maintained for hostel living. Especially for ones housing girls. This is the first case where I have heard, that school girls were residing in their school owner's house. As usual it seems, authorities in India were sleeping for the nation is itself not guarding it's conscious.
Another point here to mention is about Sheeba Paul, the principal of the school. The authorities of the school were quick the dismiss all allegation against the administrator of the school and came in full support of him. Is it possible, (which according to me is) that sexual harassment of girls in that school was a common affair known to all?
That a girl, who was not from the same area, and had come from another land, refused to follow the sexual harassment routine followed and turned rebel?
Then their is the petition in the court, which the accused has filed which states that, the girl's guardians did not want to pay 500 rupees as hostel fees, so she was shifted to the free hostel, which she did not accept and left the school.
This school has around 6-7 associate schools run by the same organization. The website of the school mentions Brite as the Principal of the school, then why now Sheeba Paul is being designated as the principal? Her arrest seems a good idea, and shows some good police work, who have arrested her for aiding Brite. That a woman is an accomplice to sexual harassment of someone of her own sex is shameful but it relates to something I have written before.
Then their is the strange mystery over details of the incident. Most reports in the media state that the girl was sick and when Brite visited her in the medical room, he molested her. Other reports state that she was asked to bring coffee to him one night and was misbehaved with. Seems like another case where media has played a sloppy role, but one can't blame them, with more and fresh cases of sexual assault and rape coming up every day, and some sensational ones like the Kurla case in Mumbai, one is bound to lose track.
In one report however, it has been brought to light that Brite has had a history of offending women.
Ultimate question however hangs and shall hang for long, as to how long shall we allow sloth in Indian education and cleanse the mentality of the society so as to be sensitive to such incidents and protect innocence (which is the real future of the Earth).
Although am bit amazed always that I am never shocked or surprised, over such happenings, I have long concluded these news as an Indian way of life. Rapes and molestations have become a part of the Indian Psychi now. Guess what, we may be after all a very pervert society.
So, why am I writing about this case, other than waking up my friends in the society to do something? This case is particularly queer.
A guardian of a 14 year old, Bhutanese girl files a complaint of molestation against ML Brite, a senior citizen of 73 years age and the girl's school principal. Naturally, the old man has denied it but interesting facts are coming out in this case like
1) The girl turns out not to be Bhutanese but Nepalese. Why this confusion of ethnicity, I wonder?
2) Let's suppose, that school authorities are right. The man is innocent. Then why did he run away, the moment, a case of sexual harassment was filed against him?
3) The most bizarre thing in this whole episode is the girl's hostel. 17 girls lived in the girls hostel that was actually, Mr. Brite's own residence. So they all lived with him. In all schools and colleges and universities, good or bad, Indian or foreign, a code of conduct or a policy or a set of rules are maintained for hostel living. Especially for ones housing girls. This is the first case where I have heard, that school girls were residing in their school owner's house. As usual it seems, authorities in India were sleeping for the nation is itself not guarding it's conscious.
Another point here to mention is about Sheeba Paul, the principal of the school. The authorities of the school were quick the dismiss all allegation against the administrator of the school and came in full support of him. Is it possible, (which according to me is) that sexual harassment of girls in that school was a common affair known to all?
That a girl, who was not from the same area, and had come from another land, refused to follow the sexual harassment routine followed and turned rebel?
Then their is the petition in the court, which the accused has filed which states that, the girl's guardians did not want to pay 500 rupees as hostel fees, so she was shifted to the free hostel, which she did not accept and left the school.
This school has around 6-7 associate schools run by the same organization. The website of the school mentions Brite as the Principal of the school, then why now Sheeba Paul is being designated as the principal? Her arrest seems a good idea, and shows some good police work, who have arrested her for aiding Brite. That a woman is an accomplice to sexual harassment of someone of her own sex is shameful but it relates to something I have written before.
Then their is the strange mystery over details of the incident. Most reports in the media state that the girl was sick and when Brite visited her in the medical room, he molested her. Other reports state that she was asked to bring coffee to him one night and was misbehaved with. Seems like another case where media has played a sloppy role, but one can't blame them, with more and fresh cases of sexual assault and rape coming up every day, and some sensational ones like the Kurla case in Mumbai, one is bound to lose track.
In one report however, it has been brought to light that Brite has had a history of offending women.
Ultimate question however hangs and shall hang for long, as to how long shall we allow sloth in Indian education and cleanse the mentality of the society so as to be sensitive to such incidents and protect innocence (which is the real future of the Earth).
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