You hear reports of assault, and you hear them, and you hear them again. And your ears burn. It’s the oft-repeated story. Last New Year. Last year. This year. Next year. Every day of every year. Every second of every minute of every day of every year.

Minor things, they say. Harmless. After all, boys will be boys. And the girls, they were from California (not sure why that should matter). Short dress, they say. Her fault, they say. Shouldn’t she have known better ? Why go out at all ? Why not barricade yourself in a room ? Because you know, if you go outside, the prowling beasts might decide to get you.

The photographs of this assault splashed across the front pages, apparently. The criminals, they are gone. Lost, anonymous, part of a mob. One, who led the assault was wearing a blue shirt, apparently. How do you find a blue shirt in Mumbai ? Another is clearly seen in photos. And on this blog, I see a link where the Hindustan Times is calling for people to identify him.

What about the rest ? From the photographs, can anyone see the other attackers ? Is there a police sketch ? Is there a hunt for these men ? Are these photos broadcast on television stations and newspapers, asking people to help identify them ? Are these men even considered real criminals ? Is there a serious search out there to find the perpetrators of this crime, one that will make them quail at the thought of being found ?

If found, can we promise that these men will be punished publicly, flogged or worse ? Can we promise massive public humiliation for them ? Have their crimes tattooed on their foreheads ? Inform their friends and families of their heinous crime ? Because they will have fathers, mothers, sisters, wives and children probably. Quite possibly they will come from “respectable” families, live in “respectable” neighborhoods. Quite possibly, they will be “nice boys”, whose mothers if asked will nod their heads and assure us that “their” boy wouldn’t do such a thing. Everyday people, you brush across in the street, who were just “having a bit of fun”, by forcing themselves on another human being.

There is an FIR, after fighting over jurisdiction. A crime occurs, a crime which threatens the most basic of rights, that of human dignity, and there is a quibble over jurisdictions. The top cop of Mumbai dismisses the matter as “minor”. Wasn’t his daughter, was it ?

I read in the reports that the police is asking the victims to step forward, and help catch the criminals. Apparently the victims aren’t exactly ecstatic at the thought. I can imagine why. The law depends on the victim as the fulcrum to pivot it’s way towards ensuring justice, without making any assurances of safety or justice towards the victim herself. What illusions of safety can one harbor after being assaulted in a public place, by a mob of men ? One man could be insane, maybe two, but a mob ?

There are baser instincts, but acting on them is possible when you’re sure you’re going to get away with it. Indian men aren’t special, they just reside in a society which refuses to acknowledge or act upon crimes against women, the poor, or the weak.

I’m not sure though why this is just a crime against the two women (let’s for simplicity consider this specific case). This is a crime against society, and there needs to be provisions in the law to facilitate indictment of criminals when there is public proof. A crime caught on camera is nothing if not public proof. The state should be able to press charges without requiring assistance from the victims.