Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Mulayams sop promise for educated rape victims is insensitive,inexcusable
It is open season on committing to sops in Uttar Pradesh. But even the current spiral of competitive bidding cannot excuse Mulayam Singh Yadavs insensitivity in saying that he promised government jobs to educated victims of rape,should his Samajwadi Party be successfully elected to lead the state administration. Speaking at an election rally in Siddharth Nagar district on Sunday,his larger reference was to the incidents of violence against women that politically isolated some members of the Mayawati government. Improvement in law and order was a key concern that had galvanised a rainbow social coalition around her BSP five years ago,sweeping the SP out of power. If Mulayams point was to pin down the BSP government on the issue,his rhetoric was not just misguided,it also betrayed an ignorance about the fine line between getting justice and rehabilitation for the victim and respecting her privacy. In the end,it only reinforced an impression of patriarchy.
Yet it is hard to shake off the impression that parties are nonetheless behind the curve in their outreach to the voter. They are yet to place her at the centre of their campaigns,and give her the confidence that she is being persuaded by the promise of an administration thats responsive to her aspirations. Simply coasting on anxieties about Mayawatis tenure SP,about older agendas like the Ram temple and reservations BJP,or about invisible scabs like Salman Rushdies book Congress cannot be enough.
