‘It’s sad to see society divided on religious lines in Kathua case’

  • | Thursday | 19th April, 2018

But it is sad to see society divided on religious lines in the Kathua rape case. We need to stand united for the safety of women, which I think is not a priority for anyone,” said 37-year-old Varun Katare. “It is good to see young men and women express their views freely on the matter. Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ campaign, a placard read: “Make women safe in India”. We plan to take this campaign forward through a ‘Reclaim the Night’ campaign and visit places considered unsafe for women at night in Gurugram,” said Ms. Walia.

more-in “When the Nirbhaya incident happened, people stood united to seek justice for her. But it is sad to see society divided on religious lines in the Kathua rape case. This is not the way forward. We need to stand united for the safety of women, which I think is not a priority for anyone,” said 37-year-old Varun Katare. A resident of DLF Phase-IV, Mr. Katare was hanging around at Galleria Market in his neighbourhood when he spotted several men, women and children assembling for a protest march on Wednesday and decided to join them. “Being a father and a citizen, this is the least I can do,” said Mr. Katare, listening to fellow protesters on the issue of women safety at the open air theatre near IFFCO Chowk metro station. “It is good to see young men and women express their views freely on the matter. It is not just about religion. We also need to rise above gender to speak about sexual assault. In an orthodox society like ours, it is easier for woman to speak about sexual assault than men,” said Mr. Katare, holding the objectification of women in media responsible for the sorry state of affairs. Responding to a call for a protest seeking justice for the Kathua and Unnao rape victims, a handful of citizens from all walks of life and age groups gathered at Galleria Market around 5 p.m. and marched up to open air theatre in Sector 29 holding placards seeking safety for women. Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ campaign, a placard read: “Make women safe in India”. Jessica Walia, a 22-year-old who writes for a Gurugram-based lifestyle magazine, said she, her mother Sonia and friend Iyce Malhotra decided to hold the march as the need of hour was to “stand united and support each other”. “I was just eight when I came to this city. It was not so unsafe in those days. Now we are told to not to go to Sohna Road, M.G. Road and Sector 29 at night. We plan to take this campaign forward through a ‘Reclaim the Night’ campaign and visit places considered unsafe for women at night in Gurugram,” said Ms. Walia. Though the turnout was not huge, she said it was just the beginning and that people had turned up despite the protest being planned just 24 hours ago. “We reached out to people through WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram,” said Ms.Walia. Renu Dhawan, an education consultant, said she was “outraged” over a series of crimes against women over the past few days and decided to be a part of the protest. “Not much has changed since the Nirbhaya incident. Why do we have a government and the police? We need to be really tough with rapists,” said Ms. Dhawan. The protesters also lit candles seeking justice for the rape victims.

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