A video of a police officer slapping a youth who was harassing a girl went viral on social media recently. According to reports, the incident occurred in Colonelganj, Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. The youth named Mehtab Alam was caught red-handed molesting a girl on the road. The minor-looking girl could also be seen in the video, looking terrified.

The policeman slapped Alam 4-5 times until he fell off his motorcycle. The youth, when caught, first identified himself as ‘Jagmohan’. However, when the police officer pressed him further, he revealed that his actual name was Mehtab Alam, a resident of Old Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh.

It is reported that the girl was walking past Dayanand Girls Post Graduate College (Civil Lines) on Thursday afternoon, when Mehtab Alam stopped his motorbike in front of her, yanked her dupatta and began harassing her in the middle of the street.

The Colonelganj ACP was returning to his office after a field tour when he noticed Alam harassing the girl. He dashed out of his car, ran towards the accused, and grabbed him. The accused was later handed over to the Gwaltoli police station.

The girl’s family was informed and her father revealed that Mehtab Alam had been stalking and harassing his daughter for a long time, but they had never filed a police complaint against the accused out of fear. He added that Alam used to hide his religious identity to befriend Hindu girls and then harass them.

Shockingly, the family was even contemplating discontinuing the girl’s studies and marrying her off to save her from Alam. Are women’s rights activist listening, or are their sermons reserved for Hindu society alone? The father thanked police for teaching Alam a lesson. But we would like readers to share their thoughts in the comment section on whether these few slaps will suffice to deter the likes of Mehtab Alam?

It is important that police initiate suo motu action against this criminal and that our judiciary put him away for a long time to teach him and others of his ilk a firm lesson. The girl’s family needs to be provided protection, as there have been many instances of Islamist mob attacks against Hindus who protest against molestation and harassment of their daughters.

The track record of our law enforcement system has been very poor on this front. Often times, stalkers, molesters and rapists are given bail after a few months or if convicted, easily get parole. Then they go back to their old ways. Many even start harassing their victims once out on bail, forcing desperate families to take law into their hands.

It is worrying that the girl’s father did not know any socio-religious organisation to help him deal with the situation and file a police complaint. It is a sad state of 100 crore-strong Hindu society that we have only a handful of organizations like Bajrang Dal, Hindu Yuva Vahini, VHP etc to deal with such issues, and those too are underfunded and over-stretched. How many grooming jihadis are operating in Bharat today, and how many Hindu parents are staying quiet about their daughter’s harassment as police is apathetic and they have no where to turn to?

All sections of Hindu samaj need to realize that caste-based ‘secular’ outfits are taking them for a ride and none of those political outfits will come to their aid when they are facing a threat from Islamists, as the Islamist votebank is crucial for the survival of those parties. Hindus need to join existing organizations in large numbers, donate regularly for Hindu activist causes, and self-organize at all levels if they want to live with dignity and security in their homeland. Hindu religious organisations – mathas and ashrams included – need to come forward to guide and fight alongside common Hindus. Silence due to fear of being branded ‘communal’ or ‘political’ is not an option anymore. Being communal, i.e. sharing a common purpose and fighting for Dharma, is exactly what we need at this critical juncture.

Churches, mosques, and even gurudwaras are today acting as hubs of their communities, openly indulging in politics and indoctrinating their followers to put community interests (right or wrong) first. Unless the Bharatiya state gets its act in order, Hindu religious organizations need to shed their diffidence and follow suit or else there won’t be much of a Hindu society left in a few decades time.

Our judiciary worries about human rights of those accused of serious crimes like terrorism, and about ‘international image’, but pays little attention to the common man and woman who are unable to afford expensive Lutyens lawyers. When a government like Yogi Adityanath’s administration takes a no-nonsense stand against rioters and seizes their property to recover damages, the SC prioritizes petitions on behalf of the accused.

Frustration levels in ordinary people who bear the brunt of almost daily crimes by radicalized minorities is rising to dangerous levels, and there is a worrying trend of increased acceptance for vigilantism. It is time the secular state woke up to this reality, and instilled fear into hearts and minds of criminals instead of going soft on them.