When powerful women become victims of sexual harassment

The Gwalior additional and sessions

resigned on July 22, 2014 after she was continuously pestered by the Madhya Pradesh High Court judge, at various occasions.

As per her complaint to the Chief Justice of India Rajendra Mal Lodha and other Supreme Court judges, she has alleged that the judge wanted her to perform dance on an item number and wanted her to visit his bungalow alone.

But when she did not pay heed to his sexual advances, she was served an transfer order with a threat that her career will be ruined completely, then the shocked woman judge in her complaint raised a right question in her complaint that "What system are we following and leading this democracy to? If this is how a mother, sister and wife can be treated, who is herself no less than a judicial officer duty-bound to protect society and law, what constitutional goals are we serving?"

Earlier also, there have been cases when two law interns were allegedly sexually harassed by the senior judges. Justice Ganguly and Justice Swatanter Kumar were named in two respective cases.

The worrying reason behind such cases is that if the women who are in the ambit of judiciary are not safe from the judges, who are supposed to grant justice in every case, but instead indulge in such kind of condemnable acts, then who will ensure justice for such victims?

In the recent past, sexual harassment cases have not only been reported in the judicial fraternity, but also in other influential and powerful professions.

Lets have a look on such instances.

In Uttar Pradesh, where, rape cases have become common crimes, a 24-year-old woman sub inspector was reportedly raped by another sub inspector in Hamirpur district on June 9 this year.

On June 4, a woman judge was raped at her official residence in Aligarh.

Another recent report claimed that a teacher was gangraped in Meerut and recently a woman lab assistant was brutally raped and murdered in Mohanlalganj area of Lucknow.

In Jaipur, Rajasthan, in May this year, a 34-year-old woman sub inspector was reportedly raped by her male colleague, who was also a sub inspector. He drugged her, raped her and also clicked obscene pics and then threatened her to make them public.

In Bangalore, an innocent 6-year-old girl was raped by the school gym instructor.

In Mumbai, last year, a photojournalist was gang raped by five men in the Shakti Mill compound.

The rape and sexual harassment cases has been on rise not only in Uttar Pradesh, but in the urban cities as well, not only committed by the people from low strata of society but also by the high profile educated men, not only committed at the young girls, but the entire female fraternity is at the risk of becoming victims of crime against women, from a little girl to an age old woman.

There has to be a change in the judicial system to give the quick justice to the victims by giving death sentence to the accused, but the irony is that even some judges have also come under the scanner for their alleged role in sexual harassment cases... so, who will heard the plea of rape victims and where is our so called democracy heading towards...?