The truth starts to emerge on the gangrape ordered by village elders. The judgment was by the local panchayat, headed by a political (Trinamul) representative. It had nothing to do with unelected and tribal village councils, as the media has been saying. Also, from what I hear the judgment was written down and it says nothing about rape but a fine, which was shared by panchayat members, all or most of whom were Bengalis, not Santals. In short, they used the situation for a shakedown, and when things got out of hand put all the blame on tribals. The rape does appear to have taken place but who the rapists were is not yet clear, nor was it part of the formal judgment. Nor has the panchayat leader been arrested. The national and international media has lapped up this entire fiction, reproducing it uncritically, because it fits into their picture of backward rural India and savage tribals.
Posted on: Fri, 31 Jan 2014 14:39:55 +0000
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