Trump Card

Till Thursday,every news channel in India was carrying a quote by Kanimozhi that said,“I don’t expect preferential treatment because I’m a woman”. She is chargesheeted by the CBI for her alleged role in the 2G spectrum case,where many others implicated are already languishing in jail. By Friday,Kanimozhi’s lawyer,Ram Jethmalani,had appealed at the “Victorian sense of chivalry” in court,that “allows differential treatment for women”. Who can blame Kanimozhi for trying a last ditch effort to stay out of Tihar Jail? Even though it is in complete contradiction to the very politically correct stand she’s fought for while in office so far: empowerment of women. It’s an extremely weak Get Out Of Jail Free card,but then desperate situations call for desperate measures.

History is replete with examples of damsels in distress appealing to a sense of chivalry in men,to be let off the hook. And it usually works. In 1535,when Rani Karnavati realised she couldn’t defend Chittor against an invasion by the Sultan of Gujarat,she sent a rakhi to Humayun,appealing for his help. Touched,Humayun rushed off to help her,but didn’t reach in time: the Rani had already immolated herself to avoid dishonour. Society tends to endorse this view. Accepted protocol in marine disasters is “women and children first”,when the lives of a group of people are at stake. But nowhere does gender come to the rescue of women more than in the US death penalty system. In all of 20th century,just 500-odd women were executed,while there were over 19,000 confirmed executions of men in the same time span in the US.

What does chivalry mean today? To me,it conjures up images of a Georgette Heyer hero,or King Arthur’s knights,hunting and slaying dragons for a living. In Mad Men,the cult TV show on advertising set in 1960’s New York,the men are always paying the bills and pulling out chairs for women,but they also always hand them their coats and hats to hang,a maddeningly patronising gesture. Chivalry is too old fashioned a term,it applies to a world that no longer exists. Courtesy is a better word for our times and it should extend to both genders. I think it’s nice when a man opens a door for me if he happens to be there,but I don’t expect him to leap out of nowhere,or run forward to yank the door open so I can glide through effortlessly. In fact,I feel a little embarrassed on the Delhi Metro Women’s compartment,where you can languorously stretch out and read a newspaper,while watching the men packed like sardines,trying their best not to spill over onto the ladies side.

Will a judge turn into a gallant knight to rescue a princess trapped,possibly,by her evil cousins and her own serious misdemeanours? I think not. The times are changing and it is 2011.

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