Why INDIA is so violent?

The anger, antagonism, outrage and collective soul searching which the country witnessed in the wake of a young girl’s brutal gang rape in Delhi could only get magnified by her death in a hospital in Singapore – a place, where she would have once dreamt to serve as a doctor being a medical student.  The protests started in Delhi where the shrill and anger of the Indians who were in deep slumber until recently, could then be heard from every ‘galli’, ‘nukkad’ and ‘muhalla.’ 

The protests in major cities across the country observed men, women and children screaming for justice and an end to the violence on women. Many others in the social and conventional media have added their commentary to the chorus. This isn’t necessarily the view of the majority of Indians, but certainly represents, at the very least, a vocal minority that is giving vent to deeply held frustrations.

But in a country with an abysmally low rate of convictions for rape and other crimes against women, (26% last year, down from 46% in the 1970s) it seems to be pointless to fixate on ratcheting up the penalty further. Consider that out of 635 cases of rape reported in Delhi this past year only one has led to a conviction. In a country of 124 Crore Indians, the countrymen raised their voice for just one incident. It’s perhaps understandable that people, frustrated by a failed and unresponsive system, are looking for novel and creative solutions to tackle the problem of violence in our society.  

As the Indian Republic heads into its 64th year, we seem to be caught between an illiberal, insensitive government-political class and a rampaging mob demanding instant solutions, with only a thin line separating the two. The gang rape ought to have been understood as a complex socio-political issue, resulting as much from bad policing as from entrenched notions of female purity and honour.

The irony which is intended to be raised through this article is, whether Delhi – the country’s capital should now be called as Rape Capital or Rage Capital?