Its been 10 days since Swathi lost her life but the impact refuses to go away. It will take a long time for the wound to heal and scars to disappear as the damage runs deep.
Having grown up in Chennai and passed a life similar to that of Swathi its very difficult to accept, leave alone digest this incident. Having commuted via the same suburban train at 6am in the morning to attend classes in T.Nagar at 7am; having taken up job in software industry and commuted alone in odd hours; having walked to the suburban railway stations - never felt in-secured or scared as it feels in the last one week. Traveling in the train, crossing the Nungambakkam railway station since this incident, one can see this fear reflecting in the eyes of everybody in the ladies compartment.
Tamilnadu and especially Chennai is known for its hospitality. So how did this happen here? Have we become insensitive? Just when these questions were hanging around, we just saw over the weekend how public chased a car which committed a hit and run at 4:30am. Then what went wrong here, is it the so called elite group that was around Swathi and failed to act? or was it just one of an incident and might not happen at all next time? Too many questions making the rounds.
Even a lady constable who is commuting at late hours has to be accompanied by her father or brother, such is the case. Parents still fear their daughter's safety. How long is this going to continue?
Its time to retrospect. Every youngster should do a postmortem since Swathi's death.
Girls - Forget about whatsapp and facebook when you are in a public place. Girl's instinct are the best, be alert when you are out and be aware of your surroundings. Be cautious of choosing your friends in facebook and your interaction through whatsapp - Vinupriya's death is huge lesson to all girls lost in social networking. Learn basis self defense.
Boys - Be compassionate towards your opposite gender. Empathize with fellow girls as you would with your own sisters. Love is part of life, don't let it grow to become obsessive in nature and over power you. Be assured its not love if it makes you think about violent measures against the girl.
This incident is just not acceptable for a civilised society like us and a country which boasts of non-violence and spirituality. We have long way to go to make a better city and a great India, for which each one of have to take the correct step forward - in raising responsible children, being social and not just being in social networing and practicing empathy.
Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high
Where knowledge is free
Where the world has not been broken up into fragments
By narrow domestic walls
Where words come out from the depth of truth
Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection
Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way
Into the dreary desert sand of dead habit
Where the mind is led forward by thee
Into ever-widening thought and action
Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.
- Rabindranath Tagore
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