Bengaluru (Web Desk): In Indian society, perhaps there is no end to sexual violence against women.
Bengaluru, the capital city of India’s southern state of Karnataka and once considered one safest cities of the country for women, as revelers gathered in the heart of the city – MG Road and Brigade Road – to welcome the New Year.
But despite “elaborate” security arrangements, women were molested, and children scared out of their wits, while male friends and relatives had a tough time protecting them from unruly men.
All this happened in the presence of 1,500 cops deployed in the area.
The CCTV footage, provided to the media and the police by the owner of a house in East Bengaluru, a woman can be seen walking on the road when two men on a scooter approach her. As they get closer, she breaks into a run. One of the men on the scooter lunges towards her. He then gropes and molests her while she fights back.
Seconds later, he throws her hard onto the ground. As the woman picks herself up, the men race away. Eyewitnesses do nothing. Not to stop the men, not to help the woman get up off the ground.
The mass molestations in the heart of Bengaluru took place a few hours before the young woman heading home was attacked. She had taken an auto home and was walking the final stretch to her house when she was assaulted.
Despite photographic evidence and eye-witness accounts, city police officially claimed they have received no complaints but are scanning security footage for evidence of molestation.
Women in India are often reluctant to report sexual assault because of fear of reprisal or social stigma.
An Indian minister caused outrage by saying groping at New Year celebrations in Bangalore was caused by women dressing “like Westerners”.
As local media published images of distraught women seeking police help, Karnataka State Home Minister G Parameshwara blamed young people for “copying the Westerners, not only in their mindset, but even in their dressing”.
“These kind of things do happen,” he said.
The minister’s comments have caused anger. National Commission for Women chief Lalitha Kumaramangalam said he should apologize to the women of the country and resign.
The federal government’s junior home minister, Kiren Rijiju, described the minister’s remarks as “irresponsible”.
Despite of the evidences Indian police claimed on Thursday they had not found any evidence or received any formal complaints of sexual assault at a New Year´s eve celebration after media reports of "mass molestation", but had registered six separate cases based on the coverage.