[dropcap]A[/dropcap] society and community in which we live, believes in Vedas of ancient era only for references and speeches, where Indian women were honoured as goddess Lakshmi, Durga and Saraswati and put on the plinths of glory. And so went the saying ‘Yatra Naryastu Pujyante, Ramante Tatra Devta’ – where women are worshiped, God resides. With the initiation of evolution, rules changed, norms changed, even the dogmas, so did the society with human values taking a forceful turn predominant before. In the modern era, she is independent but limited to numbers. Still, in rural and urban areas she is abused, harassed, burned, raped, molested; and chocked before she is born. Slowly, she started losing her liberty, priority and responsibilities. In fact, she started losing her own identity in the course of time and became mere puppets dancing to the tunes of the male of the family, may it be father, brother, hubby or boss. The whole transformation and arrangement of that precious era changed ensuing in the outcome of muddled male dominating society which blurred the human values to a great extent.
If we compare cow and female, these days cow is much safer than the latter. I am not against cow worshippers, but I condemn those self-declared custodians, those who trash humanity in the name of cattle. In the present time, cow is worshipped but woman is still raped and subjected to brutality. The way so called ‘cow protectors’ took law and order in their hands and punishing cow traders, in the same way if they would have punished those men who caused brutality to women, then society would have changed. This will bring more dignity to women.
In this era, when we are talking about progress, development, equal rights and much more then also the crime against woman is on the rise. No one guarantees justice to her; no one stands by her as they stand for the mother COW. After a year of ideological confrontation, cow politics today is contending with reality on the ground. Cow shelters are overflowing with unwanted cattle, where animals injure each other for space, or go with inadequate fodder and water. States’ resources are stretched, and officials are under pressure to seek ‘donations’ to keep the cattle. Industry and dairy are suffering, and a whole community is being denied its traditional livelihood. The collection of funds in many states has deteriorated into practical extortion, with overbearing gaushala ‘workers’ pressuring small businesses. Some even encroached gau-shala’s lands, and extorting money, which is new type of goondaism.
The unemployed youth of particular community became custodians of COW, irrespective of it eating garbage on the roadside or die eating plastics. The politics erupts when someone trades live or dead COW. Without trading a cow, how would she be sheltered? It needs someone to take care of it.
The BJP may be making a very fine calculation in reinforcement of its core base vis-a-vis Muslim voters. But the consolidation of Dalit community, which is no less affected by the cow slaughter ban, may just upset the plan. Not only Muslims and Dalits, but the unmanageable growth in Cows population will have to bear by all.
Look at the irony, the cattle population is growing in uncontrollable numbers in India, but the ratio of girl’s population to boys is declining. In that contradiction, lays a truth that many in India choose to ignore: that economic growth does not automatically mean gender justice. However, to state the condition of females in Indian society several books have been written, theories formulated, but the plight remains the same in the general term through the years. It’s disheartened at the sorry state of affairs and puzzled at her haplessness. In today’s term, though things have changed a lot but by and large it is still the same inhibited state where women are fighting for their own rights and opportunities but have no caretakers and protectors. To me, she can perform both household chores and office affairs with equal enthusiasm. She is the one who is adding to the glory of country and society, but still is not cared much. Every hour one woman gets raped, every minute several women get molested or abused by various people. Everyday one women is killed and everyday one woman is bargained or bartered to flesh trade. The larger section of helpless woman of this country does not know about her rights and even if she is aware, she has no voice.
Even Cow became a subject of Hindu sentiments but her plight is not much different than the woman. But despite being worshipped, many cattle owners allow their cows to wander throughout India’s roads and cities where they graze on rubbish dumps and eat plastic bags and other waste products. They are worshipped for a selfish reason but once they grow old, they are left on the roads unguarded. When they die, these men don’t even bother to touch it as dead body becomes unholy and they call someone to drag her body to dumping ground. Nowadays, she is merely a subject of politics and became a reason for inhumaneness. We, the Indian Hindu, need to reason out the difference between Dharma and Karma.
(Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on feedback@www.afternoonvoice.com)
