The long wait of this nation to see a rich, famous and powerful criminal punished has finally ended. After a twenty year legal battle, Mr. S. P. S. Rathore, the one who molested a teenage budding tennis player, was finally sent to jail. The ever-present smile of derision was absent on Rathore’s face when he was taken to jail.

The trial court had earlier sentenced the former top cop to rigorous imprisonment for a period of six months. There was a media outrage at this lenient sentence meted out to this criminal who spared no efforts to threaten and intimidate witnesses and the members of the Ruchika’s family. The judge who increased the sentence now says that the trial court’s verdict was a mistake. Indeed, the whole nation felt so.

Public support for justice in this case is not surprising. In a battle of unequals, the people of India stood with the weak family that fought for justice. They lost their daughter. Their son was arrested and tortured after being falsely implicated in various criminal cases. A police officer who was supposed to protect people used every power under him to hide his crime and to intimidate all who were bent on nailing him. In this land, where the powerful think that they can get away with anything, it is only too natural for people and the media to highlight this case. We usually see such criminal characters who misuse government offices and power in films. Here was a real life story that was taken to a fitting conclusion.

Mr. Rathore’s lawyer-wife is now trying to get him out on bail. However, the concerned court remarked that Mr Rathore’s bail application was not an urgent case despite him being a 68-year-old man with several health complications. This is indeed a welcome move. Otherwise, as per the honourable court’s admission, granting of bail to Mr Rathore would make a “mockery” of the whole justice delivery mechanism in this country.

There may be hundreds of young women in India who silently bore the assault of those in power because their future was in the hands of their molesters. Only a few have the courage to come forward and file a complaint against the high and mighty. In such a situation, Ruchika’s friend Aradhana, who now lives in Australia, deserves a mention here. If it were not for her bold stand, this case would not have reached this end. Aradhana was the only one who saw Rathore molesting Ruchika. Her initial reaction was shock. But she overcame her fear and troubles and stood with Ruchika’s family for the past two decades.

Recently, two young women in Madhya Pradesh were driven to suicide after a policeman forcefully dis-robed and filmed them without their consent. The cops then harassed them and threatened to spread their multimedia clips. This only shows how widespread and deep rooted is this problem in our country. Protectors turn predators and hapless victims kill themselves for they are unable to bear their shame and trauma.

The one factor that keeps a molester bold enough to continue this exploits is his confidence that most Indian girls or women will not fight back. Unwanted physical contact, indecent remarks, staring, teasing, etc., are common on our streets, in our workplaces and in our trains and buses. These incidents are on the rise. Yet, few women display the courage to turn and identify the criminal or to expose him publicly.

Which is why a recent incident in Kochi, Kerala, was highlighted by local newspapers. A woman in her 30s was walking to her place of work. A passer-by deliberately touched her even when she tried to avoid him. The woman then turned and stopped the man to demand an apology. The man, who was drunk, beat her several times. This incident was noticed by another road user and he used his mobile phone to capture pictures of this encounter. As a result, the man was arrested by local police.

A country where girls and women are not safe will not progress beyond a certain extent. In a charged-up society in which men think that all women are as immoral as the women they see in their favourite media, such incidents of harassment are bound to increase. Policemen should use modern technologies such as digital cameras to gather evidence as these crimes happen. It is the duty of the government to nab these criminals, successfully convict them and to win them maximum punishment. Thus, we may be control this menace.