Guwahati, April 19: Television channels have been abuzz with women telling viewers of men victimising them or letting them down after a relationship. Now, a number of women activists have asked for a law. It is aimed at preventing women from taking advantage of men by claiming relationships with them.
The activists share the platform with a few men of stature. The controversy snowballed after Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi, when asked to comment on a Congress candidate being sued for rape, said: "Such things aren't new. I, too, was a victim of such allegations with a lady who goes by the name of some Pandey claiming to have had an affair with me."
Local TV channels - especially some known to be inimical to Gogoi - latched onto his statement then got singer Alaka Pandey who had made the accusation to react to the chief minister's statement.
"I had an affair with Gogoi (between 2004 and 2006)," she said. "I am hurt that he does not recognise it". She is the daughter of famous Goalparia folk singer Pratima Barua Pandey.
When asked, Baharun Saikia, an advocate of Gauhati High Court, told The Telegraph that though she was herself a victim of male chauvinism and harassment, she did not think that all men are the same.
Referring to the Alaka Pandey interview, Saikia said such developments were sending a very wrong message about women in general to society.
"Pandey had claimed in the interview that she was a 'victim' of Tarun Gogoi. She did not make it clear as what kind of victim she was. This has made the case doubtful," she said.
Saikia, who has specialised in dealing with cases of marital discord at the high court, said it is high time that the nation drafts a separate legislation to protect and safeguard men against atrocities of the opposite sex as such cases are on the rise.
According to actress and activist Akashitora, there must be clear demarcation between women who are genuine victims of violence and women who exploit laws for their personal gain or ambition.
"I am not advocating things on behalf of men. I am only referring to a few cases (not reported to the police or highlighted by media) where men have become victims of atrocities or harassment by women who take advantage of existing laws. Such a trend has the hidden danger of weakening cases of genuine women victims as society may begin to then gain a negative perception of them," Akashitora said.
Anima Guha, noted writer and activist, said a section of "so called educated, intelligent and smart" women are misusing laws originally made to safeguard women, to blackmail men to achieve their goals.
She said such a trend cannot be acceptable in a society where women are put on a pedestal. "I have personally come across several such cases," she said.
Anjali Prabha Daimari, president of the Boro Women's Justice Forum, said even while many uneducated village women are victims of violence and atrocities, there are some women who always look for an opportunity to misuse such laws.
Saikh Mohd Sabah Al-Ahmed, a faculty member at Don Bosco School at Panbazar here, who also anchors fashion shows, quizzes and other events, said that "evil" resides in any gender and with a lot at stake for women vis-à-vis these laws, one has also seen a certain trend in recent times of women misusing them to target men.
"With monetary compensation such as alimony, 'mohar' etc, some women do get tempted at times to misuse the law and twist and turn events and even stage manage things. Society, too, has a natural benevolent attitude towards women, and so is often easily swayed by 'fake' accusations by women against their men and in the process they misuse these laws," Ahmed said.
Apurba Kumar Sharma, senior advocate and member of the Press Council of India said the media has to play a very responsible and balanced role whenever they highlight reports regarding women's allegations against men.
"Any charge of a woman against a man should not be one-sided. A man should be given an opportunity to speak. That, I think, will in no way weaken the case of the woman," Sharma said.
