Although women’s bodies are often the most brutal casualties of any violent clash – in Gujarat Riots in 2002 and now in Manipur – crimes of sexual violence against women and the continuing ethnic violence in the state continue to be only an “internal matter” for the country.
Two tribal women from the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur were paraded naked and sexually assaulted openly by a mob of men. The women were forcibly taken down a road, naked, to a paddy field in broad daylight while being surrounded by scores of men who groped and allegedly gang-raped one of the women. The incident happened on May 4 this year, but came to light only 77 days later.
The harrowing video that surfaced on Twitter on July 19 shook the nation ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, where political parties and citizens hoped that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would break his silence on the ongoing crisis in violence-hit Manipur. He did – but his address found no mention of the larger ethnic violence in the state, the deaths of around 150 people (which have been reported so far), the large-scale destruction of homes and the alleged targeting of tribal communities by the state.
His remarks, which came after 77 days, however included a reference to the Congress-ruled states of Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh which haven’t witnessed violence of the same scale. “I ask all chief ministers to ensure that in their respective states, the law and order system be made stronger. Particularly when it comes to the protection of our mothers and sisters, the strictest action must be taken. Whether it is in Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh or Manipur, in any corner of this country, politicians must rise above political rhetoric to ensure women are respected,” Modi said.
The Minister of Women and Child Development, Smriti Irani condemned the incident as “downright inhuman.” She said that the chief minister informed her that an investigation is underway. But opposition leaders questioned why it took the minister – who is in charge of the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules, regulations and laws relating to women and child development in India – two months to address the grim situation in the state.
The Supreme Court too took cognisance of the incident and urged the Centre and state government to act. Shortly after, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh confirmed that the main accused in the case has been arrested today. His statement claiming that Manipur Police “swung” into action “immediately” after the video surfaced, drew sharp criticism as senior police officials confirmed that a “Zero FIR” was filed against “unknown miscreants'' involved in the incident on May 18. So why then were no arrests made for over two months? Why did the police interfere only after the video went viral? – questions were raised against the ruling government in the state.
Further, the Union Government restricted Twitter and other social media platforms from circulating the video as “showing videos that could lead to problems in law and order are not permitted under Indian law.” Although the Centre has powers to order takedown of content by social media companies under Section 69 (A) of the Information Technology Act, 2000, internet activists reiterate that restricting the messenger from disseminating such crucial news could curb freedom of speech. In fact, in the current situation, Manipur has not had access to the internet since ethnic violence first erupted on May 3. Many have pointed out that the incident may have come to light earlier – forcing authorities to take action – if the state had not ordered a complete internet shutdown.
The situation is far from being resolved as violence continues to be reported in Manipur. Although women’s bodies are often the most brutal casualties of any violent clash – in Gujarat Riots in 2002 and now in Manipur – crimes of sexual violence against women and the continuing ethnic violence in the state continue to be only an “internal matter” for the country.