What prompts a crime? Is it the victim or just the criminal’s mind or both? This is the question that always comes to my mind when I come across any crime especially dealing with assault, rape, murder and many such of the same ilk.
It was the very same question which came to my mind when I first heard the news about HP BPO's employee Pratibha Krishnamoorthy Shrikanth. In my tormented mind I imagined her fear as the sick guy committed the heinous crime. I read about the police’s reaction to it. But my question is “Will checking the background of all cab drivers prevent this”? Nobody is born with an evil mind. It’s developed over a certain period of time or it’s developed in one weak moment. I am also a bit skeptical about the background check itself. There are ways and means known to many about by-passing laws. It’s a universal truth and let’s acknowledge it. We did our bit of living room discussion on the subject when one of us raised the point that sending security guards with every cabbie might be a good idea. But my skeptical mind raised another question “How will you trust the security guard? On what basis?” We have heard of criminal incidents involving security guards as the main culprits. Whom do we trust? What about cases of mugging in broad daylight? Withdrawing money from an ATM or bank doesnt feel secure anymore. What can one do in such a situation where you have an assault weapon in your face and nobody around who will help? How do we change this situation of perpetually being in terror? And they talk about cross border terrorism all the time! I for one don’t feel very safe anymore about moving around alone in Bangalore. I have been in Bangalore for the past 17 years and never before did I shirk from walking back home from a bus stop 10 minutes away from home at 9:45 in the night. Now I will. I will become an obsessive compulsive over-the-shoulder looker. Our society is leading women towards a pepper spray and karate revolution. And it’s not only women. What about men who get mugged at knife point. Safety is fast becoming a myth in Bangalore.
I know there are a lot of questions and it’s an open ended debate. But it’s a debate that has to be discussed and a solution to be reached soon. Like Narayana Murthy said in discussion with Bill Gates and Prannoy Roy on NDTV, Indians are great at debating endlessly but we need to arrive at decisions faster (This quote is of course not verbatim. It’s just a quick gist). This need is of a greater consequence today. So let’s rally together and try to pool in our ideas. Let the solution to the growing problem of safety come from us, people!
8 comments:
These incidents only reflect the tendencies of certain individuals and not society as a whole. Corporates should require that their vendors get a risk-mitigated certification from a third party before integrating outsourced staff into their system.
http://www.crp.co.in/press1.htm
No one knows why a crime is committed. But yes we can try and find a solution. I doubt if this is going to be easy, though.
Yeah you are right. But I say let us rise a la the sphinx from the ashes of skeptism and solve this problem...
hi siri..first time here...and nice place too..
while my sincere condolences are with her family i feel that the crime that happened in the case of Prathiba is nothing new,but the issue is..and its precisely so because she was an techie with HP ...not an underprivilged or oppressed person
There are thousands of other not so privileged women in India..in Bihar,UP,Orissa,Rajasthan and M.P who face Oppression from high caste men ,rape,assault and murder as a daily reality..
...people about whom newspapers don't carry stories if they get raped or killed..
maybe we all should look more deep..
Kannan, I agree at you on a certain level that rape is not a new issue. But the circumstance in which it has happened to Prathibha is new. Sometimes things like this jolts one out of their cocoon and sets one thinking. The thing to do now is to look into all aspects of safety of everyone however privileged they are.
sorry Kannan...its agree "with" you! Dont know what i was thinking :)
And thanks for your compliments too...keep visiting
ok. lets thrash all those concerns about the wide chasm between decisions and action. all of them.
lets focus on some pro-active solutions that could possibly avoid nasty incidents:
i>deserted roads, especially after dark, to be strictly avoided. yes, even if its a romantic walk with your brawny boyfriend
ii> dont depend on your instincts alone..sometimes they could be a tad late.
iii>pre-empt incidents-stay networkd with all fellow cab travellers, chat a lot while travelng.Let the cabbie know he's ferrying a group and not several single individuals.
iv>closely watch the cabbie's body language. look for the not-so-casual-stare. follow his eyes-they seldom hide tendencies.
v>and siri, the pepper spray and karate do help. a penknife could also be handy(say a basic victorinox-its not illegal to carry them except in-flight)
IN CASE OF EMERGENCIES:
*reasonably long nails help. go for the eyes.
*knee in the groin. dont wait to get your stronger leg into position. just go for it and give it your best. dont stop with one.
*shout, scream your lungs out..it could dissuade him and attract attention.
*believe. even if you've skipped your last meal, you're strong enough.
chillypickle : helpful tips...very helpful...
i brought back a small knife which was more like a momento from switzerland but now i think am gng to put it to good use..
cant access your blog spot though...whats up?
Post a Comment