Honor Killings in India

A few days ago, a national daily newspaper reported the heinous murder of a newlywed couple who had been working in a software company and, evidently, had a bright future ahead. The couple had got married under police protection, anticipating trouble from their families (apparently different communities). It turned out that police protection wasn’t good enough to save the lives of two lovers who were, eventually, killed for having dared to marry out of caste. As shameful and as horrific it sounds, this gruesome killing (not the first of its kind though) took place in the capital city of India, Delhi.

That’s what they call it in India when a young couple is brutally murdered on the pretext of saving the honor of their respective families. The crime for which they are punished (rather executed) is for loving and marrying someone who hails from a different community / caste. Ironic as it sounds, India is being viewed as a new face emerging on the global platform as a country that offers tremendous growth and business opportunities as of today. Perhaps, lagging behind all these years has turned out to be a blessing after all. Reminds me of the conventional hare and tortoise story. Slow and steady wins the race! As they say even the most potent political systems / governments / social systems have their own set of pitfalls, the downside in the Indian system is, most certainly, its entire social structure which, so blatantly and brazenly, shows in its dogmatic views, its hideous and heinous approach in dealing with problems of youth, its fanaticism, its gruesome attempt to curb the individuality of the younger generation and its intolerance and unacceptability of the changes which have crept in, due to intermingling of various cultures, in the wake of globalization.

In olden times, Indian society was a victim of various evils, one of which was caste system. It is said that the caste system was designed with an intention of dividing the society into four distinct groups depending on the kind of work they were involved in. So to say, it was an easier way to assign different occupational roles to people; the motive was to ensure smooth running of the entire economic system. However, the division of society on the basis of caste system turned out to be the most horrifying milestone in the history of India as it lead to downgrading people on account of the families they were born in and the menial jobs they earned their living from. Simply put, the dignity of labor was lost and that reflects in the modern society as well. For decades, the poor belonging to lowest in the hierarchy (Braham-priest, Kshatriya-warriors, Vaishya-traders and Shudras-the laborers or the untouchables), were treated as despicable out-castes and were, mostly compelled to live on the outskirts of the village so that they couldn’t drink the water from the same well as ones from the higher castes did . Sounds terrible but that’s where the present society evolved from. No doubt, the caste system was abolished long time ago as a result of relentless and selfless efforts of countless social workers including a renowned Indian jurist and a political leader, Dr. Ambedkar (architect of Indian constitution) who spent his whole fighting against the social discrimination and caste system existing in India. Perhaps it was preordained that the man who would be responsible for eradicating one of the major evils in the society would be born in a family of untouchables . That's who Ambedkar was, by birth. All for a reason!

One would wonder if things have significantly changed in India post independence, which was about six decades ago. Well, my friends and family keep drawing my attention towards scientific, economic, technological and infrastructural advancements the country has shown over the years. Alas, the package doesn’t sound interesting, especially, after knowing fully well ‘what lies beneath’. (Reminds me of a woman who loves wearing expensive make-up on her face without realizing that she needs to pay more attention to her decaying internal organs if she wants to stay healthy and naturally beautiful).

It’s sad to see that nothing much has changed socially; in fact, decades back, society was divided only on the basis of caste but today multiple factors are responsible for the social disparity. In modern India, it’s hard to find a person who would see himself only as an ‘Indian’. What has emerged after all those years of hard work, sacrifices and bloodshed during pre-independence era, is a totally chaotic modern society where people discriminate on the basis of race, color, culture, gender, states, religion and economic standards. I think it’s worse than being divided only on the basis of caste. What kind of a society permits the elders or so-called self-proclaimed leaders of a particular community to have a proprietary interest in the marriage of a young girl and a boy who dare to fall in love and dream of having a life together? I believe that a decision to spend the rest of life with someone should be purely personal (to bride and groom) and no one (not even parents beyond a certain extent) should be allowed to interfere in such important and sensitive issues. People who think that such cases are reported only in the Muslim community, have to pay closer attention to other parts of the world where such things do not appear to be predominant and remain hidden beneath the surface. For a ready reference I’m sharing this LINK with you and remember….this is only a tip of the iceberg.