Abusive language, death and rape threats.
What comes to your mind ?
Gurmehar Kaur…
Bingo! Okay, next question
Physical assault, Molestation and Sexual Abuse
Now what ?
Blank ?
Watch this video –
She is Prerna Bhardwaj.
She is also a girl.
She is also in her twenties.
She is also from DU.
But unfortunately you don’t know her.
Sadly her Facebook post ‘didn’t go viral.’
Somewhere in the hustle bustle of Azadi, National versus Anti National, free speech, tweets, trolls, rape and death threats… Her story was lost, or rather shall we say her story didn’t suit the narrative and hence was thrown away.
She was at the protest ground last week against the seminar where Umar Khalid (who faces grave charges of sedition) and Shehla Rashid were invited to the Ramjas college.
During the protest, Prerna Bharadwaj, who belongs to the ABVP (just as Gurmehar belonged to AISA) was physically assaulted and molested by the students of AISA & SFI.
Prerna was horrified by this gross behavior and the outright hooliganism afflicted on her. She reached home and presented her traumatic ordeal to her parents. She later posted this on Facebook.
I went home and cried, and cried for hours, my clothes were torn, my mother came running she was horrified to see the sight I was in.
She expected the worst she kissed me she cried too.
She enquired what happened. My father heard the noise he came in the room too.
I told them some boys from the left tried to molest me, they hit me on my chest infront of everyone today.
Papa enquired where did it all happen I told him that we were protesting, protesting for the country who made me what I am today, protesting for the integrity of the county, Protesting as a payback for my university. My father kept looking and didn’t say a word, I continued “I am girl, I know and you won’t like me being so much into the politics, I know you’ve been with me in every step of my life be it when I chose Humanities over Science or my decision to become an army officer and an IPS instead of a doctor , how can I tolerate the insult of my nation, how can I tolerate abuses on the people in the uniform when I myself is an NCC cadet and wear uniform!
How can bear somebody tearing clothes of my friends and the female police who was there to protect them?
How can I stay quiet when they call terrorist a shaheed?
Papa! Nobody knows it better than a family who has lost someone for the country?
How can I not fight for my nation when being Indian is my only identity?
How can I not fight these goons when they try to molest me?
Till when I stay silent for the sake of “the so called pride of the family” ?
I know papa, people must be cooking stories about how my clothes got torn and the society will be telling you to keep me at home and lock me but papa, till when I will stay under the judgements? Can’t I take my own stand?
You’ve always taught me to do something that makes you proud!
To never let you down!
To stay dignified!
If I haven’t fought, I would have let you down, I would have been ashamed in my own eyes, I would have been never able to forgive myself If I DID NOT FIGHT BACK ”
My father, in tears hugged me and said
“When I told you that make me proud someday, I meant this, I am proud of you my cadet ! ”Today, when I am writing all this I thank AISA, SFI and all the anti national elements to give me chance to see that glow in my parents eyes.
I thank you for deepening my love for my country and giving me chance to FIGHT BACK!
THANK YOU
There has been a big hue and cry, anger for the threats and abusive language used against Gurmehar Kaur which is right, but in contrast what about Prerna Bharadwaj who was actually sexually assaulted.
No one even cares to talk about her.
We ask why ?
Why is the media silent?
Why can’t Nidhi Razdan tell the whole world the trauma she faced?
Why is she not a talking point in Ravish Kumar’s debates?
Why can’t one of their reporters do a cover story on Prerna Bharadwaj?
Why does it seem as if Do Rajdeep and Sagarika consider her less of a woman?
Why does Barkha Dutt’s duty of protecting women end when the victim belongs to ABVP and not to a left aligned group?
Why have Javed Akhtar or Naseeruddin Shah or Raza Murad or Pooja Bhat failed to express their sympathies with her?
Why is DCW still not acting on it?
Why have Rahul Gandhi or for that matter even the Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal disappeared ?
Enough is enough. These people have had it for too long and for too good.
All of them must be forced to answer this
Do Prerna’s wounds hurt less ?