Intimidation, Threats & Then Clean Chit – How #Metoo And Legal System Have Failed Indian Women

Bill Cosby is in jail. Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey are awaiting trial. Roman Polanski has been expelled from the Academy. Several others have been ousted from positions of power, in Hollywood.

In India, Vikas Bahl has been acquitted. Anu Malik will soon be back on Indian Idol 13. Nana Patekar has been left off by the police for no eye-witness supported Tanushree Dutta’s allegations against him. And for several others, the allegations didn't have much of an impact on their lives.?

So, was #MeToo just a popular trending hashtag in India (particularly in Bollywood)? Has anything really changed in the past eight months since the movement began? Let’s take a look!

It was in October 2018 that India experienced a wave of #MeToo movement – the one which, just like Swadesi or anti-corruption movement, we thought, would be remembered in the history of the world.

About hundreds of women, who remained silent for years keeping secrets like they were tight knots in their stomachs, finally took to social media, a platform that reaches the entire world, to voice their anger, frustration and put their emotional trauma on display – for the world was finally ready to listen to them and believe them.

The society wasn’t judging women and blaming them for the incidents that left scars on their hearts forever and the offenders were roaming out freely with out a shred of shame in their hearts. The women finally braved themselves up to talk about it, and the world watched, listened and read to their horrifying stories in shock.

It seemed like a revolution. Things will change from now on, we all assumed. But after eight months, has anything really changed? Or has the courage of the women gone down the dump?

Nana Patekar has been left off by the police for no eye-witness supported Tanushree Dutta’s allegations against him. Vikas Bahl has been given a clean-chit. Casting director Mukesh Chhabra has also been acquitted. And Anu Malik is reportedly in talks with Sony TV to join back on Indian Idol 13.

Nothing happened to Sajid Khan, Kailash Kher or Rajat Kapoor, who even came forward to accept his faults and extent an apology. Alok Nath, on the other hand, is out on bail and was recently seen in De De Pyaar De.

But who is still going through the misery? The answer is obvious and hasn’t changed – women. Women are facing the turmoil yet again.

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The onus is now on Vinta Nanda for she has to prove her story to the world. It took three weeks for police to file an FIR after she lodged a complaint. The FIR didn’t lead to an immediate arrest. Rather, Vinta Nanda was asked to go through a medical test, 20 YEARS LATER, to prove that she was raped.

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On the other hand, Tanushree Dutta, who kick-started the movement in Bollywood after she braved herself to finally open up about the incident when Nana Patekar sexually harassed her on the sets of Horn Ok Please, doesn’t even know who are the 15 witnesses whose story the cops say doesn’t match with that of her. Were those witnesses from her side or that of Nana Patekar’s? She has no clue. The truth is difficult to prove sometimes, she has concluded adding that the cops have been slow with the probe.

Did these women even get any support from the industry? The big names including the Khans didn’t even comment on the movement that took the entire nation by storm. Nobody is talking about it now; nobody is protesting; nobody is even questioning why there is so much delay. These women are left to fight their battle on their own.

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When Vikas Bahl was acquitted, the industry reached its saturation point. His partners at Phantom Films had long back accepted the charges levied on him. Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane both had then called him a sexual offender.

But in the end, he was acquitted. He is now free of all the charges and back the director of Hrithik Roshan’s Super 30. All this happened a few days before his the movie’s trailer was released. Coincidence much?

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The internal committees looking into sexual misconduct charges "might not be the right mode at times," filmmaker Hansal Mehta told Hindustan Times after Vikas Bahl’s acquittal. Such decisions “shatter the spirit of the movement and of the woman who recounted her story,” Taapsee Pannu told IANS.

“The fraternity, filmmakers, crew, actors and all participants of this industry who know the truth should stand up and want to clean up this open secret of a mess?,” said Sona Mohapatra who during the movement had accused Anu Malik of sexual harassment along with singer Shweta Pandit, who had called him a pedophile saying that he asked for a kiss when she was 15.

Also Read: #MeToo Accused Anu Malik To Return On The Indian Idol Show, YRF Bans His Entry In Their Studio

If the #MeToo movement has proved one thing again, then it is that the failure of the legal system to deal with the injury of a woman who is a victim of sexual offence.

In the West, on the other hand, things are a lot different. #MeToo has been far more than a hasgtag. The #MeToo has achieved more than just the talk.

Women in the West are still talking about it, unlike in India. They used platforms like award functions to come out. Ellen DeGeneres recounted her sexual assault by stepdad only recently.

In India, no one is talking about #MeToo now like it is a long lost topic which doesn’t hold any relevance anymore. The politicians are mum. This wasn’t even discussed during elections. This wasn’t even a part of any campaign. Nobody promised that those found guilty will be punished.

Was #MeToo just like another trend that came, created a havoc and is gone by unnoticed? Has the legal system failed Indian women and #MeToo?