Raise your hands everyone who has been groped, whistled at, followed, leered or worse whilst on the streets of our cities? Is it a full house? I would suppose so.
From travelling in crowded public transport, where an elbow digs into one’s breasts, or a hand roams over your behind, to being followed on the road with cat calls and leery queries, every woman learns to put her head down and walk quick in public spaces and not react. Reacting could lead to worse. And what is worse is that no one will dare intervene. Intervene is risky. Boys have got knifed to death for yelling out street harassers. Remember Keenan Santos and Reuben Fernandes? Yes. Three auto rickshaws full of men with weapons returned to take them on after they slapped a drunk man who banged against the girls they were with. The case caused outrage for a while, and like most other such cases, inspired many a television debate where wise folks give their carefully considered opinions on the subject and the case for justice actually goes on till all public interest dies down.
