Horror in India

Tragically, within a few days, two young women in India, both from the Dalit community, have died after being gang-raped. In the first case, involving a 19-year old girl from the town of Hathras, two arrests have been made. The gang-rape is thought to have been committed by upper class Hindus, throwing into focus India’s blazing caste wars in an increasingly fascist state. The second rape involved a 22-year old girl who had walked a few metres from her house in the same state of Uttar Pradesh. The town of Hathras is located 100 kilometres north of New Delhi and there have been strong protests as opposition party members, women, human rights activists and other groups have walked towards it to state their anger over what has happened.

Such events have occurred before in India and incited similar rage, but they have not stopped the violence women of India have to face, particularly those who are not Hindus from a high caste or those who are in some way vulnerable for other reasons. This is hardly surprising in the India of Narendra Modi where class, caste, religion and other factors determine the strong from the weak and the oppressors from the oppressed. The 19-year-old raped in Hathras, who died later in hospital, is said to have been burnt by the police – possibly to hide evidence – while her family was kept locked up. All this is virtually unbelievable in a modern democratic state. It is hard to understand how India could have descended to this level this very quickly. The depths of darkness the country is plunging would not have been thought to be possible just a decade back.

Disrespect for women and violence against them is a trait and issue common across the region. But in India, it is combined with growing fascist tendencies under which people who do not support the Narendra Modi government have been increasingly silenced and condemned to violence of all kinds. There have been cases of Muslims being beaten up or killed. And, of course, atrocities in Kashmir continue. It is hard to believe such events can go on much longer. India’s opposition parties, with Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka joining the march to Hathras, have staged protests. But where these will lead, we cannot say. Already, the government has cracked down on the opposition. India needs a far larger uprising if such crimes are to stop, and the slogan ‘Dalit Lives Matter’ taken into consideration by the people who rule India with increasing force.