Aadya Gupta, Week 9

Rape Cultures in India: Pratiksha Baxi- Review 

Baxi begins by expressing her sorrow at the fact that prevention of sexual violence hasn’t been addressed in the planning and administration of the city of Delhi. The layout of the city is obstructed with narrow lanes and blockages, making it easy for any pursuer to trap a woman and assault her, or worse. The policemen are complicit in propagating sexist attitudes towards women, policing their clothes when they should be policing the men instead. Safety has become priceless, and it is unable to be guaranteed anywhere. The attitude of the local Delhi male citizens is supported by the Judiciary’s view- which constructs rape as sex. Central to this understanding is the valuation of women as objects. Sexual violence is so horrifying that after a while, ordinary citizens get desensitised to it- they dismiss it as an everyday occurrence- and this allows the men who rape to commit this crime with impunity- for they know society will protect them. The first instinct after all, is to ask about the victims character and loose morals. The death penalty for rape causes more problems than it cures, and this penalty has become a populist gesture that satiates the injustice felt by the masses. What I found interesting in the article is that it links fundamental Hindu nationalism and oppressing/violating of women’s bodies – for such links are only found after we comb society to find its underlying patterns. The judiciary’s irregularity in dealing with rape cases and rape victim’s inability to get justice further stigmatises them. Baxi calls for a public resistance to these policies that allow such a toxic culture to propagate- one that violates and profits off women’s bodies, for until we have a mass social movement and demand that the government take action, women will continue to suffer from systemic oppression.