Bus Ab Aur Nahi... Anti Sexual Harrasment March in New Delhi

Kunal Malhotra

"Janaab yeh paise de ke layi gayi bheer nahi hai...Yeh log yaha khud aaye hai "
(Sir this crowd has not been paid to assemble here... they are here for their own cause)
--Dialogue from a Hindi Film

It was the height of Holi frenzy; a time when a lot of sins are easily forgiven and forgotten in our beloved Delhi. What happened this year at the University of Delhi campus was nothing new or unique, just the usual; a group of boys harassing women with ridiculous way of playing Holi (yes, the hands go all over). The hooliganism continued until "Bura na maano Holi Hai" echoed everywhere like doorbell in an empty mansion. This sentence was itching in the ears of the victims of this violence to an extent that it became intolerable. The victims asked to themselves, "What have we done to deserve this? It was then when the realization struck, and unleashed in the form of disapproval and retaliation, but even that yielded in further abuse. Astoundingly a faculty member was amongst the victims too!

What really made the matters superbad was the apathy of the authority towards the incidents (they blamed the girls who retaliated for provoking the boys) and local law enforcement’s denial to file any charges!

The "Bol ke Bus ab aur nahi March" to highlight the Street Sexual Harassment was organized as a response to this and hundreds of other incidents of harassment by the so called 'stronger' sex. Around six hundred odd students, and many faculty members with placards in their hands and the word 'Inqalab' on their lips heralded for a safer Delhi. The energy was reverberating, the josh was immense and the cause was right. We all know that we have to be part of THE change…

But a lot of questions remain… Why do women find it impossible to report an incident of harassment? When will the police start taking such reports seriously? Shouldn't the university campus be heavily policed or will the perpetrators keep finding new places and new ways!

Or should we look at the larger question, "Where have the larger values of chivalry and responsibility from the minds of men disappeared and since when has harassing women become a sign of masculinity?"

Do you agree with the blog post? Or maybe not? Must Bol is an interactive space and we will love to hear from you in the comments section...