The media circus surrounding the Ruchika Girhotra case

If you've been following the news in India, you must be aware of the media circus surrounding the Ruchika Girhotra case.
Of course, some people might take offence at the use of the term media circus in this post. Yet, that is precisely what it is. I do not condone the actions of Mr. Rathore, in fact, I condemn it highly. Read on.

Mrs. Abha Rathore, wife of Mr. Rathore has complained that Mr. Rathore is being tried by the media. Tell me, Mrs. Rathore, if it were not for the media, do you think that Mr. Rathore would have been convicted today? If it were not for the media, would you find that an entire nation has been outraged by the action of your husband? The outrage of what happened to Ms. Ruchika and the simmering rage that we all hapless citizens bear because at one time or the other we've also been victims of abuse of power. A man who was supposed to protect her fundamental rights violated it and you're crying hoarse about the media circus? When did the law and justice become mutually exclusive?

A note to Mr. K.P.S. Gill

Mr. K.P.S. Gill is best remembered for 3 things.
1) Flushing out militants in Punjab and restoring normalcy there.
2) Flushing taxpayers' money down the toilet and contributing to the decline of Indian hockey.
3) Flushing respectability of career policeman down the toilet by slapping a woman's 'posterior' at a party.

Now, Mr. Gill is offended that his brother-in-arms, Mr. Rathore, is being 'tried by the media' and is having his police medal stripped from him. His contention is,

"Medals should be taken away only in cases of treason by police officers. In other countries, they strip an officer of medals only if he commits treason or is in involved in suspicious international activities."

Firstly, as you've pointed out, that is elsewhere, and not in India. Don't even get me started on comparing India to functioning democracies elsewhere. That's one battle you will not win.

The Central Police Awards committee recommends withdrawing police medals for officers who have been convicted of moral turpitude. Surely, bottom slapping is moral turpitude? So, I understand that you're anxious about losing your own police medal and are now publicly coming to the rescue of your convicted colleague.

Where is your shame, Mr. Gill?

A note to Mrs. Rathore

Dear Mrs. Rathore,
You've started something called a 'character assassination', a ploy that is used and used well by the peculiar breed of sub-humans called lawyers. Your contention is that Ruchika's father is 'morally corrupt'. Tell me, why are you so interested in what consenting adults do behind closed doors? What business is it of yours? I am not even going to discuss whether this is true or not as it does not concern me, and shouldn't concern anyone except Mr. Girhotra and a Mrs. Girhotra, if she exists.

Secondly, by extrapolation of your comments, do you mean to say that if the father is 'morally corrupt' by your own silly standards of ethics, the child should suffer the advances and molestation of a sexual predator disguised as a protector? Should Ruchika's parents and sibling suffer because of what you think is morally reprehensible?

Finally, let me put you through a scenario. Your husband has now been convicted of a crime. The key word here is convicted. That crime is molesting a minor. There are few crimes actually are as morally reprehensible as that. Obviously, even by your definition, your husband's character is flawed. So, going by the intentions of your smear campaign, if somebody nows molests your daughter, you'll give up seeking legal recourse because, 'My husband's character is unquestionably bad'?

Get off your high horse, Mrs. Rathore. Don't you have any shame?

The Pill

Call me a champion of woman's rights or a closet chauvinist, I don't really care. But I strongly believe that the single most important invention in recent times that has really empowered women is The Pill. The pill gives women the chance to have sex without the bother of pregnancy. It really was the spark that lit the flame of the sexual revolution in the western world in the sixties. Of course, the pill does not prevent STDs, but at least takes away the complication of unwanted pregnancies.
The best indicator of social empowerment of women lies in the sales graph of the pill. The more pills sold would mean a more progressive society, especially for women. There are numerous studies that have proved how society has been transformed by the pill and for the better.

The other great indicator of women's empowerment in India is the rapidly rising divorce rates, especially in cities like New Delhi and Bangalore. This is not a cause for concern, methinks, but a reason for celebration. It means that women have now been empowered financially and socially, and so are now more confident of walking out of unhappy marriages. Compare this to the previous generation (and before that), where women had no choice but to endure a unhappy, abusive and sexually frustrating marriages. All becuase the husband controlled the purse strings.

The next great revolution for women's empowerment in India will come with the introduction and implementation of child protection services. I believe marriages are an unnecessary societal farce and that having children in today's world is nothing short of a criminal misdemeanor but the truth is that marriage and children are a part of society. Often, it is the children who are the worst affected in a marriage. As a result, even in families where the wife has the economic freedom to walk out, divorce is not an option because of the stigma attached to a failed marriage (for the kids) and the lack of proper child protection services. Although, I am inclined to think that this could be a reason for men also not walking out of unhappy marriages.

If you're a woman and have walked out of an unhappy marriage, I tip my hat to you. Power to the people.

Gubernatorial chutzpah

You've probably heard or read of the sensational sex scandal that's hit the headlines this morning. 84 year old, Governor of Andhra Pradesh, N.D. Tiwari being caught on tape cavorting in bed with 3 lovely luscious ladies.

You can watch the YouTube version here. There are shorter versions on YouTube, one actually posted by someone called 'pornvideozone'.



I must say, I'm inclined to tip me hat to him. For the following reasons:

• Sex with a beautiful woman - regardless of whether you're paying for it or not - is a nice thing to have. To get it on with 3 women at the same time is definitely beyond any straight man's fantasy. But to do that at age 84, is simply extraordinary!
• Assuming this is true, he probably did not even have to pay for the women. Most likely, it's the tax-paying suckers (yes, mate, you and I again) who were stiffed (pun intentional).
• And suckering poor Ms. Radhika into believing you'd grant her a mining license takes the cake.

Too bad you've got caught out, Mr. Tiwari. Of course, politicians and sex scandals are nothing new or noteworthy. But are excellent fodder for tabloid gossip.

It's probably bad enough even to visualize in your mind but the actual video of an 84-year old man lying semi-comatose while being fondled by 3 really lovely ladies is definitely not something you want to see while slurping down your cereal (bad timing by the news channel, I'd say). But that apart, why bother if someone pays money if they want sexual pleasure? As long as of course it isn't taxpayers' money. That does piss me off. Apart from that, is this guy not allowed to use 'hired help' to get what he wants? Of course, prostitution is illegal in India and given that he shouldn't have done it. However given that Ms. Radhika 'supplied' him the girls, it's probably not even illegal given that there's no proven financial transaction that's occurred. But then criminalizing prostitution is another archaic law that I do not see the value of. Even the supreme court has suggested it. Read about that here.

It's a bad mess you've gotten yourself into, Mr. Tiwari. My sympathies lie with you. Just so long as you pay from your own pocket.