Completely cut off from the news, I was scrolling Twitter when I checked out the trending on Twitter, and found this hashtag #DelhiCrime; the first video I saw was of a person beating a girl unconscious in some village location. It was not Delhi, but the further I scrolled, I saw the CCTV footage of a girl running through a busy street, and then the next clip is of a boy repeatedly stabbing her. When she falls down, he kicks her in the face and stomach. But not yet quenched, he picks up a big boulder, probably a piece of concrete slab, and smashes her head, FOUR TIMES.
I felt disgusted at it; angry would be an understatement.
What broke me was not how this animalistic person killed her but the apathy of the people around them. They just looked at it as if it was a regular, everyday scene. Nobody dared to interfere or protect her. They just walked by.
I could count a dozen people who walked by and did not even stop to look at her. the last part shows, that there is nobody around when he smashes her with the slab.
Where did they go? How could they just let it happen? How would they be able to face themselves in the mirror?
I feel ashamed to be a part of such a society. I am more angry at the people who let it happen than the person who did it. He will be punished under the law, but what about those who just looked at it. What about those who will now come out to protest about it but were mere onlookers while it all happened? Those who will start blaming governments and police and law and order, and whatnot. Those keyboard warriors who will leave no social media platform without playing their agendas?
Now politicians will start blaming each other for not being able to protect women, not being able to maintain their regions, and their crime rates.
As a society, this is what we have become, unashamed, unapologetic onlookers. Dead inside, so much so, that a person is being killed, brutally murdered next to us, and we don’t even bat an eyelid.
As Sikhs, we were bestowed with a Kirpan(a dagger) by our Guru, to protect the downtrodden, to be the just civilian, to help and protect those who were helpless, to become the shield in such cases.
But I believed that in these times why would one carry a Kirapn/sword all the time, what use would one possibly put it to. In a situation like that, if there was a proper Sikh, who abided by those principles, he would have definitely come to her rescue.
But I wonder, if I would be able to do that, would I have the courage to do that even if I had a sword with me. Or am I also a keyboard warrior who would have shit his pants when he encountered such a scene. Or would my lineage, my Sikh blood hit me and make me come forward and fight the person.
Whatever faith, religion, caste, or ethnicity one believes in, as humans, we should use all that to fight incidents like these instead of fighting against the belief, ethics, and faith of others. The boy is a Muslim, and the girl is a Hindu, that is the narrative right now. But should Hindus fight against Muslims for that, or should humans fight against such animals. Who were the onlookers, Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs? The criminals don’t have a religion, nor do cowards.
Bupinder Singh 'Fidoic' 