Rape can be verbal too

With each passing day it is becoming increasingly clear that Indian politicians are probably the most shameless in the world. That much has been proved by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray’s charge that the Maharashtra government’s “weakness” was responsible for the rape of a photo-journalist in Mumbai the other day by five persons. No government anywhere can prevent a rape; but every government would be expected to take the strictest action against convicted rapists. If the Maharashtra government had failed on that count, the Opposition and even the man in the street would have been justified in demanding the resignation of the Government.

But even the worst critics of the Government in that State are sure to admit privately that it displayed rare speed in arresting all the five alleged rapists. But the one party which has no right to criticize the Government is the Shiv Sena which has had to make one of its legislators resign from the post for what really was “verbal rape”, to borrow the expression coined by one of the leading Indian editors of the 20th century.

Anil Kadam tendered on Saturday his resignation to Thackeray (not to the Speaker of the Assembly!) for abusing and “threatening to disrobe female toll booth attendants” in his constituency. It was clearly an embarrassing situation for Uddhav who had earlier issued a statement demanding that the accused in the gang rape of the photo-journalist be taken out in a procession through the streets of Mumbai with their faces blackened.