a perspective not often heard and discussed. from the mouth of the victimised
i too might be guilty. think a picture was attached to a link i tweeted. will check and rectify
Dalit Web: We know that the Indian public is fully aware that victims of rape are protected under this law and that it is a criminal offense to reveal their identity. We know this as it is only one year since the Delhi gang rape happened when there was a strict enforcement of this law. Subsequently, in the Tehelka sexual harassment case involving a woman journalist, a round of discussions happened in the mainstream media and social media, where this topic was discussed again. Here various women’s groups took the stand that the right to privacy of the victim is totally inviolable.
However, such rights and privacies are reserved only for the ‘sacred body’ of the upper caste woman. When it comes to the bodies of dalit and tribal women no such rules are kept, and pictures of their raped, naked and mutilated bodies are captured and circulated with impunity. We have seen this happen in various cases of sexual violence against dalit and adivasi women.
So it is not at all surprising that Dainik Bhaskar has kept to caste-tradition and published the photographs of the underage girls. It is no wonder that the Economic Times and the urban Indians on social media didn’t think twice before breaking the law and circulating these images further.
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