It was shocking to have one of the finalists, Abha Singh, of Lead India - an initiative of Times of India group, talk about rape so casually and insensitively in one of the recent episodes.

 

In her response to “whether rapists should be given death sentence or not”, she said that if it is the ‘first’ time for the rapist then perhaps he should not be penalized with capital punishment but if it is ‘seventh or eighth time’ then he should be given a death sentence!

 

Gosh! seventh or eighth time. It is absolutely crazy and outrageous. The statement completely overlooks the damages done to seven or eight lives before the victim is being severely penalized. Those whom we think of as our potential leaders, have perhaps no clue of what they are saying. In this response, conviction seemed missing, statements or responses were mere words, lip service.

 

The candidate further said that “prevention is better than cure”. Women need to dress up appropriately and not provoke men in order to reduce the instances of rape. So this should mean that no women should be raped if dressed in a saree, or a salwar suit or a burqa! Statisatics surely do not agree with this viewpoint. Moreover, it is high time that we need to sensitise men towards women instead of putting the onus of everything on women.

 

What was most displeasing and upsetting about the episode was that none of our “esteemed” judges/panelists raised any voice or objection or expressed any anger to her response. On the contrary, the candidate walked away with a decent score.

 

I am glad that finally the decision had to be made basis people’s votes and not the judges’ decision. And I am very proud and happy that the decision was made against this candidate. She truly did not deserve to be there.

 

For a leader it is of utmost importance that he/she connects with the people and their needs. I do not oppose humanistic approach where one considers the intention of the criminal and takes into consideration the level of repentance experienced by the criminal after committing the crime. But I surely do believe that rape is perhaps the most heinous crime anyone can commit. It not only violates a woman’s body but also rips apart her whole psyche. I am sure psychologists friends would agree to it. The trauma experienced by the rape victim can not and should not be undermined at any cost, under any circumstance. It is important that all of us understand that the nature of this crime as experienced by the victim is very, very different in terms of its impact as compared to any other crime. the impact is not only on the physical and social self of the victim but  also injures emotional and psychological self severely. The damage cannot be undone. Not by social acceptance, rehabilitation programmes, financial support or any counseling. therefore, it is essential that each one of us tries to minimize the instances of rape and molestations and perhaps, one of the ways is to penalize the victims so severely that others shudder to even think of committing a crime like this.

 

I plead the panelists in the Lead India programme and their organizers to be sensitive enough to issues like this. The show is not like other reality shows on the television as here, every statement said on the show either by the judges or the candidates or guests leaves an impression on millions of viewers.

 

In concept this programme is very unique and progressive in thought but the responsibility that comes along with it should not be forgotten. The objective of influencing millions of Indians and especially the youth should remain the focus other than finding a potential leader for the nation.