Bengaluru: “When I walked into the city in 1997, Bengaluru was much calmer and safe despite the hustle and bustle. I could see police vans patrolling most of the time,” says Tamaghna Adhikari who is the regional manager at a private equity firm in the city. Tamaghna and his friends were kind enough to speak to Deccan Chronicle on a busy Saturday evening about the an issue which needs immediate attention despite lengthy discussions.
“It is sad that despite such a huge population safety of women and now children is always an issue that pops up every other day. We have become numb to these horrors now,” says Tamaghna. “The police are failing to take care of this huge population. They need to be more skilled and more geared up for cases where children and women are violated,” his friend Bharat added.
The rise in cases of sexual abuse against women and children has even upset Home Minister Dr G. Parameshwar, who recently called the city a rape capital as it in Karnataka in the number of rape and sexual assault cases.
“Sadly, it is not just the police but I think as citizens we also need to be alert and report cases and raise their voice if they see anything like that. It is about time that we stop keeping quiet about such crimes,” Tamaghna observed. “I don’t even see police vans patrolling that much as much considering the increase in such cases,” he lamented.
Tamaghna warns the public to shed its apathy. “We need to come out of this numbness and take a serious look at it. This 'chalta hai' attitude needs to change as it is the biggest deterrent in solving any problem being faced by the country. It is just not crime against women and children but so many other areas where this attitude is causing problem. Hence high time we change it.”
His friend Noor stressed on the need to check the antecedents of teachers before their appointment, in the wake of cases of sexual abuse of schoolchildren. Teachers should be trained to create awareness among children about indecent behaviour. “Background checks should be in place, be it for teachers, drivers, conductors and other professionsals as well,” Noor added.
“A massive awareness campaign, fast-track courts and severe and speedy conviction of the accused can only deter the perpetrators of the crime,” said Bharat.
“Ultimately it is us who decide the government, so it is us who are to be blamed. And, we need to change ourselves to expect any change from the government,” Tamaghna summed up.
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