Part I
Girls with henna on their palms, exquisitely designed, beautiful girls adorning happy smiles – Boys wandering around women section in malls, taking help of any/every possible female to get something girly and gracious enough – Bikanerwala, Haldirams and Bengali Sweets, the famous sweet shop chains, having a riot like situation, minting money – Roadside vendors with 500 watt bulbs hanging from loose wires bargaining with women of all age.
What could it possibly mean?
What else could it be! How could you even wonder. It had to be obvious, you moron!
Welcome to one of the many festivities in India. Those who missed out on Eid few days back, here is another reason to celebrate. And we Indians celebrate with pomp and show, mind it!
‘Foreign ke vaasiyon’ – Friends from outside India – Rakshabandhan is that day when sisters tie a thread on their brother’s wrist and pray for their well-being and the brothers in return vow to protect their sisters always everywhere. For more information, there is Google, you know.
Part II
Now look at these statistics borrowed from the website of the National Crime Records Bureau.
Crime against Women
| S. No. | Crime Heads | Cases Reported | % to Total IPC Crimes | Rate of Crime | Chargesheeting Rate | Conviction Rate |
| 1 | Kidnapping and Abduction of Women and Girls | 51881 | 2.0 | 8.8 | 68.4 | 21.1 |
| 2 | Assault on Woman with intent to Outrage her Modesty | 70739 | 2.7 | 11.9 | 95.8 | 25.7 |
| 3 | Insult to the Modesty of Women | 12589 | 0.5 | 2.1 | 96.1 | 32.0 |
| 4 | Cruelty by Husband or his Relatives | 118866 | 4.5 | 20.1 | 92.3 | 16.0 |
| 5 | Importation of Girls from Foreign Countries | 31 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 37.1 | 19.2 |
Violent Crimes against Women
| S. No. | Crime Heads | Cases Reported | % to Total IPC Crimes | Rate of Crime | Chargesheeting Rate | Conviction Rate |
| 1 | Rape | 33707 | 1.3 | 5.7 | 95.4 | 27.1 |
| 2 | Dowry Deaths | 8083 | 0.3 | 1.4 | 94.0 | 32.3 |
Part III
Does anything get into this head of ours?
We ignore these statistics because it is always ‘others’ who become a number to this table. This ‘other’ is someone we are so unrelated to that we cannot feel the agony of becoming a number, adding to this statistic. The next number that adds up in either of these classifications could be us. Guys, the next victim could be someone close to you – your sister, the aunt who made you a spoilt brat when you were young, your mother, even grandmother, your favourite teacher (including the one you drool over), your friend, girlfriend, anyone!
Because it is Raksha Bandhan today, I thought I could get some of us to look at these numbers. Some, even one, to take that one little step.
All Indians are our brothers and sisters, says our National Pledge. I am not unaware of the ‘except one’ that many of us added after that sentence!
So, rather than hovering around like butterflies near the Biba, W, Fab India, Archies stores, how about gifting our sisters that much deserved free air and space this Rakshabandhan? How about we let them breathe? Live. Grow. Nurture. What would we be without our women?