Been thinking (a lot) about the current #MeTooIndia movement:

1. Firstly, it is excellent that this is all playing out in the public domain on media / social media. It brings the issue front & centre & out from the shadows / under the carpet. It forces organisations / associations to start complying (real compliance, not paper compliance) with India’s pretty well-laid out harassment laws. That said, If this whole ‘movement’ is going to remain within the realm of ‘media/social media trial’, it is going to seriously hold back effective on-ground change, as people, on seeing no long-term punishment to perpetrators, will get lax about compliance again…

2. The conversation in many cases already seems to have watered down into a she-said-he-said mega-public-spat. So, unless criminal complaints are filed and proper investigations done, it allows the accused to charge the accusers, with vilification charges.

3. You do not get justice on social media. You get only exposure / vengeance / retribution. For those for whom this is the ultimate objective, it’s fine. You have every right to seek that. But then don’t club your own agenda with a larger ‘social justice’ movement and expect people to support you. Coz it ain’t one. It’s just personal vengeance. For justice to be delivered, you need to enter the criminal justice system. Unless a majority of the cases go from allegation –> police complaint –> investigation –> chargesheet –> trial –> punishment / acquittal, one cannot say that justice has been delivered. If that does not happen in most cases, it gets labelled as a “retribution / vengeance was the accuser’s only goal” movement, cheapens the movement and the perpetrators will get away without any real long-term punishment.

4. If there isn’t a complaint followed by a formal investigation, how is a man (who says he is innocent) supposed to prove his innocence? Both Varun Grover and Chetan Bhagat have clearly & unequivocally declared themselves innocent & objects of vilification. If they are right, how are their names to be ‘cleared’ of the media-trial smear?

5. There is already some ridiculous conversation around #MeTooIndia. A) Jwala Gutta has ranted about her non-selection and her tiff with her coach under the MeToo hashtag. That’s not just laughable, its grounds for having her brains examined. B) When I posted a news article on Kaneez feeling sexually assaulted by Aditi, I got a comment back from someone who says that she has known Aditi as a child and this action (kissing someone forcibly on the lips and pushing her tongue down her mouth) was Aditi’s way of showing affection & it wasn’t sexual. This entire line of talk is rubbish.

6. Also, there needs to be a clear distinction between sexual harassment and inappropriate flirtation / creepiness / tharkiness. Till a “NO” is said, in whatever form, it is NOT sexual harassment. And even the slightest persistence after the NO is said, IS! Without this distinction, individual interpretations come into play and that dilutes the power of the more serious cases. E.g. The Chetan Bhagat matter is cringeworthy and roll-your-eyes creepy, but it is, quite simply, not sexual harassment.

7. Lastly, it is time to relook at anonymity in this fracas. As the Varun Grover case shows, anonymous posts are a disaster waiting to happen. Today, we can be fairly confident, that with this #MeTooIndia movement, the burden of shame has moved from the accuser to the accused. Hence, it is time to eliminate anonymity. I am not making judgment calls on why some victims have been reluctant to come forward. But I will stress that it is needed, for all parties concerned, that the accuser not stay anonymous. If anonymity is persisted with, people will start using that as a cover to settle old scores and then even the most genuine cases will not be fully believed & and therefore not be supported as they need to be.

I know this is a heavy burden to put on the victims, considering they’ve already gone through so much and are re-living it, but they, and their support system around them, need to step up, take things legal and ensure that this tremendous opportunity for societal change that #MeTooIndia is, doesn’t get diluted.

P.S. Over 4yrs ago, Ness Wadia had been accused by Priety Zinta of molestation. For 4 years, he carried the label of a molester. He had to seek permission everytime he had to leave the country. Yesterday, the case was dismissed and Ness Wadia declared innocent. So, should he sue Priety Zinta / Indian media houses for slander?

P.P.S. There are hundreds of cases of men having committed suicide after being falsely accused of molestation by women. When do we take up that?