With Tehleka itself becoming news and its editor, Tarun Tejpal, being accused of sexual assault, both the mainstream and social media have become hotspot of debate, outrage and introspection. In midst of all this, politicians are coming out with even more outrageous statements shifting the focus from the case to some conspiracy theories and Tejpal’s links with politicians.
After the December gang rape in Delhi, there seems to be an awakening. While much of this talk is due to voyeurism and the great human desire to know about sex and crime, the positive side is women are discussing it. Who would have thought even a year ago, a law intern or the victim in Tejpal case would write blogs on their horrific experiences?
The crucial difference between the gang rape and sexual harassment at work places is the fact that in the first one it was an open and shut case, where one of the accused felt so ashamed that he committed suicide, while in the case of work places, a working woman’s complaint is always viewed with suspicion.
Since working women are outgoing and move out of their houses, they are assumed to be less of a woman. And, if she indulges in "manly" activities like drinking and smoking, she is assumed as "being available". The fact is from a position of power, where you can decide on the economic independence of a woman, the crime becomes graver.
Women, who complain of harassment, are not only bold enough to make it public but even risk their future employment. Besides, the more educated the culprit is, the more responsible he ought to behave, and, therefore, educated should be liable for far more severe punishment than less educated.
Though the ratio of girls joining journalism has improved from the time we joined in the 1990s, by the time, their career progresses, many women quit. This may be true in other professions too with family becoming a priority for women, but it is more so in journalism. Very few women rise to the level of decision-making.
And, there is no blaming a man here. One of the reasons, a senior woman journalist in the largest selling business daily gave me while refusing me a job is that “you have a small child”. She was a single lady with no child, yet she assumed women with small kids do not put in enough hard work.
It is a bias prevalent probably in other professions, too, but there are many colleagues, both male and female, who I have seen are reluctant to put in hard work without any correlation to their domestic responsibilities.
Now with the Tejpal case, media organisations are reassuring their female employees and taking stock of the sexual harassment committees formed after the Visakha judgement. But all this is unnecessary. By their very nature, media jobs are considered too tough for women. Most parents do not want their daughters to join the profession.
And, it has nothing to do with sexual harassment. It’s about working hours that often stretch late into the night. A young colleague once told me how her father-in-law was bit sceptic about a journalist daughter-in-law and then advised her to keep away from political reporting because politicians are not nice people!
One of the many reasons, I do not regret joining journalism is the fact that the liberal environment of the profession allows it to introspect and criticise itself. It is evident in a campaign like coverage against Tejpal and senior journalists, who were also his friends, writing against him. How many professions do that?
How many bureaucrats talk against corrupt colleagues or how many in the industry criticised Phaneesh Murthy when iGate sacked him earlier this year? And, for what that matter, how many sadhus and sooth-sayers talked against Aasaram Bapu? What happened to the BJP spoke persons when Aasaram was exposed? There may be far more grave acts of sexual harassment which might have been committed at work places, but no one talks about it.
