Two strange decisions from a court in Kerala ignited public debate over apparent Sharia and colonial-era laws prevalent in modern-day Bharat. Both comments came from the same judge in two separate cases of sexual assault against alleged urban naxal Civic Chandran. One of the victims is a vanvasi (tribal) lady.

A few days ago, the Kozhikode sessions judge granted anticipatory bail to writer and’ social activist’ Chandran in a sexual assault case. The court stated that it is “highly unbelievable that he will touch the body of the victim fully knowing that she is a member of Scheduled Caste!” A week before, the same accused produced photographs showing another complainant in “sexually provocative” dresses, and the court had granted him bail.

Chandran, 70, is accused of sexual assault/harassment in two cases. Police filed the first complaint on July 17 and another on July 29. The same judge, S. Krishnakumar, granted him bail in the first instance on August 2 and in the second case on August 12. Incidentally, this comes when more allegations are cropping up that allege Chandran is a serial abuser. 

On July 17, a SC writer alleged that Chandran assaulted her modesty on April 17 by attempting to kiss her on the neck. The judge questioned whether such an act was ‘sexual and without consent’. He claimed that the woman had not offered a clear explanation for the delay in submitting the complaint. The judge refused to accept that Chandran kissed the woman taller than him, given his age and state of health. He also mentioned that although they were friendly, they disagreed on releasing a publication she had written.

According to Krishnakumar, the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act violations would not constitute a prima facie case against the accused because it is “highly unbelievable that he will touch the body of the victim fully knowing that she is a member of Scheduled Caste. To attract the offense under the Act, it has to be established that the act of the accused was with the knowledge that the victim belonged to a member of SC/ST.”

Judge Krishnakumar added, “this is an attempt to tarnish the status of the accused in society. He is fighting against the caste system (sic) and is involved in several agitations. It is not stated in the first information statement that the accused’s act was with the knowledge that the victim belonged to a member of SC. The accused is a reformist and is engaged in fighting against the caste system, writing for a casteless society. So offenses under the SC-ST Atrocities (Prevention) Act will not prima facie stand against the accused.”

In the second bail order delivered on August 12, the judge said, “To attract Section 354 A (sexual harassment), there must be physical contact and advances involving unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures. There must be a demand or request for sexual favors. There must be a sexually colored remark. The photographs produced with the anticipatory bail application by the accused revealed that the complainant herself was exposed to sexually provocative dresses. Section 354 A will not prima facie stand against the accused.”

So the court expects a sexual abuser to ask his victim whether she is from an SC/ST community and if the answer is yes, she will be left alone? What makes the court so sure that such Andolan Jeevis work ‘against the caste system’ or for it? We now know what social workers like Teesta Setalvad have been doing in the name of ‘activism.’ 

And isn’t it amazing the leeway courts grant to someone just based on their public image as a ‘reformer’? Then, even SC/ST victims become unreliable – but if a general category Hindu were accused under SC/ST Act, he is presumed guilty and jailed. Hasn’t the MeToo movement shown us the kinds of predators who lurk in the left-liberal/activist world? Being a left-liberal and anti-caste (codeword for anti-Hindu) activist is truly like having a blank cheque in our system!

Chandran might or might not be guilty, but it is alleged that such pre-programmed judgments predict the final verdict. Undoubtedly, the victim’s battle for justice will be long and winding. According to the court, Chandran’s older daughter is a deputy collector, and his younger daughter is an assistant professor. All this means the accused has a ‘good reputation’ in society.

Such judgments are precisely why the chorus against nepotism and our colonial justice system is slowly rising. 

As for the ‘provocative dress’ comments, does the law say such women can be harassed? Don’t ladies have the right to choose what to wear? Or are those arguments only used against Hindus who protest the degeneracy being promoted in films and mass media?

It is time to get back to our roots, to Hindu Dharma, and devise laws in line with eternal principles but which are also contemporary and balanced.

In ancient Bharat, men were known for their “Shaurya,” a mix of traits including control, strength, and patience. During that period, women in many areas of Bharat wore nothing but jewelry. Women were at the head of many families and were highly respected. They had rights and duties, just as males did. They lived with much more safety and security compared to what they experience in today’s semi-colonised secular state.

Incidentally, Chandran is an anarchist who supported the Kiss Of Love Andolan and termed the obscenity, ‘peaceful protests.’ Kiss of Love was a ‘protest’ by feminists, activists, and a bunch of degenerates protesting against alleged moral policing by Hindu organizations by locking lips on the streets. Later developments clearly showed that the real purpose of the organizers and the supporters was to push minors into prostitution. 

Moral policing incidents in Kerala are rising, thanks to radical Islamists. But does that mean we indulge in french kissing and hugging openly in front of school children? More importantly, why does our system give preferential treatment to such Urban Naxals at the expense of commoners? 

Those who opposed the latest judgments included several former Naxalites and the communists. They know very well that the same vanvasi tossed Naxalism out of the state when atrocities against them grew. Those horrors included those committed by the state and the Naxals. Former Naxals like vanvasi leader CK Janu joined the BJP and are now the target of both Congress and the communists.