E-Paper
Strict policing must to tame eve-teasers
I feel Delhi is very unsafe for women. Now I mostly travel by car, but I still remember my college days. Eve teasing was common then. We experienced it in the college campus, in buses and even on main roads, reports Amanpreet Wahi.
I feel Delhi is very unsafe for women. Now I mostly travel by car, but I still remember my college days. Eve teasing was common then. We experienced it in the college campus, in buses and even on main roads.
I studied in a girls’ college. Our principal was very strict. She ensured a lot of police personnel were posted in front of our college.
Men always rode about the college on bikes. The police noted down the vehicle numbers of those who passed by thrice, and kept them under watch. This can be one way of dealing with the problem.
Strict policing can surely help reduce instances of eve-teasing, at least in colleges and the university.
Like many girls in Delhi, I too dreaded the idea of being pushed, shoved and touched. However, my father insisted that I travel by bus at least once a week. So, we used to travel in Delhi University specials or chartered buses.
As for the odd ride in a private bus, the very thought makes me shudder. I always ended up arguing with male passengers in those buses. At times, I even had to slap some. I had become quite free with my hands at the time!
The saddest part was that not just young boys but also the older men — unclejis — ogled women and said lewd things to girls young enough to be their daughters.
Walking down roads was no different. In fact, I still hate walking on Delhi roads, even those in ‘posh’ south Delhi. Men try to get close to you... they touch you.
Strict measures are necessary to tackle this menace. Stricter policing is one of the solutions. The law has to be more effective.
Men who harass women should not be let off lightly as this encourages them to persist in their habits. If not checked at the outset, they attempt more serious sexual offences, such as rape.
Wahi is a Delhi-based model. She graduated from Jesus and Mary College in 2003.
