A tendency to Hide...

Google Images

It starts off as a simple act that all of us have gone through / go through / will continue to go through. What is wrong with that, one would say? After all it is a natural tendency of a normal human being.

It is about Hiding. Leaving aside the fact about the word being a Verb or a Noun or can be used as an Adjective, simply speaking, it implies concealing something from sight. What one conceals from sight could vary. It could be a person, an object, a fact, a happening, or what ever...

Question that came to mind was why? It could be making ourselves scarce in a shopping mall, when we see some one who we simply don't want to meet or have the person know that we have seen them and don't want them to see us. It could be as simple as hiding something from some one. This could either be due to not wanting the other to know, or simply concealing it for what ever reason, good or bad.

The fact that hiding or concealing any thing, gives us more pressure, tension, sleepless nights, worries, becomes secondary in these cases. What takes importance all around is the fact that we need to conceal something. At any cost. Even when one looks at history, since time immemorial, concealing has been a habit. Initial thoughts were that one learns this from their peers, or family members, or friends, but when you see a one / two year old baby, hiding something with glee, and we find that extremely cute, one wonders. Where did the baby learn this from?

Where did it start? Probably from the Mother of all Mothers, Eve, who started it with eating the forbidden fruit without telling God. Call it concealing or hiding, one would say, it started from there. Ventured down millennium, through generations, small or large, good or bad, it continues unabated. And the way it goes, probably would go down future generations too.

I am not sure if this can ever be stopped, or would mankind ever reach a point where they would not hide / conceal any thing. Is it feasible? Is it possible? Is it sustainable? People would be exposed, there will be no secrets, every one will know the truth. It could spark fights, wars, but would it ever reach a point where people don't care any more.

The other extreme is Non Mankind. The one we call Animals. I am not sure if they hide anything. And if they do, what and where? Guess, we have a long way to go.

Rape... A Joke?



(c) D&G

It was the recent article in the Newspaper (as always). A woman accused a man of forcing himself upon her and had filed a Police Complaint. The person was accused of raping the woman, as he had had, physical relations with her for the last two years and now refused to marry her.

Another case was filed, where a woman complained about being raped by her friend, who had taken indecent photographs of her during their relationship, decided not to marry her and the woman termed it as Rape.

The question that I have is, Is this Rape? Now before I get lambasted for this supposedly Anti women comment, my question is simply based on the facts that are there on both these cases. Yes, I agree, that Rapes in India are becoming like the common cold, however there is an increasing if not an equal number of cases, mostly in the urban cities, where Rape cases reported are on the increase and an increasing number of them are being reported as women having relationships with men, who eventually turn back.

Fact also being of the recent question by the Supreme Court, whether a failed affair is a valid ground for Rape? The fact that the highest court in the land has raised this question, highlights the levels of low's that the system is being dragged into. Or the way it is being used?

For sure, India is probably among the top nations where Rapes seem to happen regularly (of course stats for other countries could be equally worse), however the fact does remain, that in our sincere earnestness to provide justice to the oppressed, is that justice also being misused?

There does exist an old saying, the Law is open to interpretation or There is a loophole in every rule, it is how people exploit these to their benefit. I am not debating or denying the fact that women are the oppressed lot in India, however a stark reality also is that many are now using this as a tool to get back at people.

Failed marriages, broken promises, relationships, are all becoming causes for complaints by women, many charging these as Rape. Some countries have even gone to the extent of increasing Sexual Harassment Laws to such an extent, that men are afraid of paying a lady a genuine complement, for fear of them being called Male predators

Many a time one hears of cases where women state that there are explicit photographs of theirs, that the men took of them, many who state that they entered into a physical relationship with some one, as there was a promise of rape and so on. Unfortunate that many men use these women as objects of leisure, but then, are these women too not to blame? Are they not aware that they are being used as pawns and not Queens?

As one goes through many a case, one finds these to be educated women, not the rural village women, but women, who are settled, have a good life, a family, and yet you see an increasing number falling to the guiles of men.

Am not running a morality debate or a contest here or stating that women are not being oppressed, but yes, as one hears more and more of such cases, where men are dragged into courts on grounds of disrobing a woman's modesty, one does wonder... Is this a power that is being misused? Is this power that has been given in excess?

The fortunate part is, that even though on the rise, is still miniscule compared to the real horrors, the only fear being, that at some point does not become a case of Cry Wolf.