Nandu Lohar

                                                                     
             Deaf and Mute Rape victim in 2002 case in Minta,Rajasthan

Nandu was deaf and mute since birth. When she was taking her cattles to the farm one of the man from her village caught her in a deserted alley and raped her thinking ..that a deaf mute girls will not even be able to tell anybody that she was raped. But Nandu cmae back home and told her mom everything. She had never gone to school so could not write and tell but her mom understood her signs and actions pretty well to realize what has happened with her poor daughter. She immediately went to police station and reported the incident. But seeing that no action is being taken against that ..she came to Taraji for justice. Taraji made sure that an FIR is filed and the case is taken to court.

Now since Nandu was deaf and mute ..this case posed a lot of new challenges for Taraji. To start with the judge asked how Nandu will take her oath  in court? This was a very silly and upsetting question . If a women can not speak then does that disqualify her from getting her constitutional rights and justice? Finally based on such arguments the case moved on. The next challenge posed by the judge was how to believe and understand what nandu was saying? Even when Nandu’s medical report, circumstantial evidence( her broken bangles, torn blouse and undergarments) e.t.c were clearly proving what happened to her. The Judge wanted a “deaf and dumb” school trainer to report Nandu’s sign in their way. Only that report will get credit in court. Taraji was determined to get Nandu justice. One such teacher(trainer) was hired from Ajmer and for 4 days we worked together to some to a stage where he could show in court-approved sign language about what Nandu was trying to say. After that Judge was convinced that Nandu was a rape victim and the criminal was sentences 14 years of imprisonment. This was the first case in the history of Rajasthan that a dumb and mute girl got justice like this. Media called it “finally court listened to the mute’s heart wrenching story”

Nandu is really an inspiration really deserves this award. Her courage and persistence to get justice is commendable. It took 2 years for her to see her criminal behind the bars and there was so much poverty in the family that everytime she had to borrow money from neighbors to get to court in Bhilwara ..but she never gave up. Her sefl esteem is higher than the sky and we salute her.

12 yr old Pooja from Bhilwara ..2006 case

1.      Pooja Mali :  Resident of Bhilwara 2006 
When Pooja was 12 year old . Her Neighbor Anil Mali came over and kidnapped her with the intention to sell her in a brothel in Mumbai. He first took her to the Kota train station and raped her. While boarding the train from kota to Mumbai he had to get down for some information and other stuff …Something about him made 2 policemen from Rajasthan state suspicious and they started questioning him. While doing this Anil got scared and he told the policemen all about his plans and bad deeds. Over hearing this conversation 2 policemen from MP state dropped  by , showed sympathy to her and told her that they will take her safely back to her parents. Innocent Pooja was soo grateful to them and she could not stop thanking them and calling them her god send saviors.They took both Anilr and Pooja both to a place near police station in MP and called up 2 of their senior officer inviting them for a grand party. Then they forced pooja to drink lot of liquor and gang raped her and treated her in the most inhumane way. She was lying drenched in blood and was crying in pain in half-conscious state..Thats when they realized that things might have gone too far ..and they might get in trouble.So they asked Anil to take her away. In Bhilwara Pooja’s parents reported her missing at the police station ..while here in MP Anil decided to halt his plan to take pooja to sell in mumbai ..given her condition. While he was returning from Kota to Bhilwara the Rajasthan policemen questioned him based on the “missing” report identification. Finally Pooja’s poor parents left their daily work when they were reported about her whereabouts. And somehow scrambled money to travel to kota to get their daughter back from the subhashnagar police station.

Whats surprising is that for 3 days police officers were not even ready file an  FIR for her case. They kept on asking them to come back some other time ..while they were busy partying and getting bribed from the criminals. Third day exhausted and disheartened parents of pooja finally contacted Taraji. I (taraji) immediately took them to the senior police officer and told him the whole horrendous incident. Within ½ hr Subhashnagar’s police station officer Abhay singh was removed from his post and a new incharge was appointed. When media got more attention to this case then the 4 police officers who gang raped her also got arrested. Till date this case is still being fought in the court and the accused are in jail.

Pooja was chosen for this honor specially because in last 6 years the poor girl, poor parents have been given thousands of offers to settle the case. The 4 criminals have made numerous attempts to lure them with 5 lakh rupees, house, tractor e.t.c  to suppress the charges. But inspite of all hardships and immense poverty they have every time denied their offer and were resolved to fight for their daughter’s justice with Taraji. Taraji herself has received life threats and kidnapping threats of her single child .. but they all remain true to their resolve to fight this case in the court till Pooja gets justice.

Taraji and Bhanwari Devi ..the leaders

I guess its high time to come back .
While i was translating the victim cases for Taraji ..i thought to myself..These stories definitely need more attention, more audience.

So i will be posting the stories she shared for a while .

Every case is bring tears to my eyes ..and a sense of fear .. that all this is very real ..its not a movie or a novel anymore ..its happening around where i was born ..it happenings where my near and dear ones live.
It would be a lie to say ..that i did not know all this is happening.. but i guess growing up in India you are very well taught how to "shut your eyes and your mind" to the unpleasantness around.

I think i am still a chicken ..and would not know how to face such situations or help such victims .. but i guess the least i can do is ..give them a wider audience. Since i am sure i know people who think these things don't happen anymore.

I have tried to keep this blog ..mostly like a diary rather than publicising ..jsut to keep it to myself but may be not for these posts .. will shall see

Taraji a social worker in Bhilware region of Rajasthan has worked for hundreds of  women victim of voilence , supression rape e.t.c in her 25+ years of time spent in that region.

She went ahead and organized a fair in which we awarded a token of appreciation to all the victims invited. To make them feel proud of their struggles and also so that their struggles can be inspirational to others in similar situation.

The first person she thinks of for this Fair is Bhanwari Devi.
Who was the trendsetter. Her struggle was a milestone.
and Her story can be read in wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhanwari_Devi

and her courage surpasses all .. she totally deserves the "extraordinary  courage conviction and commitment" award.

But what makes you think/wish is .. that she should have never been victimized .. that she should have gotten her justice asap .. instead her community left her , her family left her .. i hear even her kids finally did ( i guess they are not to blame for it though) .. but her dignity  prevails.. The mark in history ..remains.

I still remember seeing parts of Bawander 10 years back .. in horror ..of how people can be made to suffer for no fault of their own .. and


Here are pictures of Taraji (white sari) and Bhanwari Devi  (orange sari) in the "shangharsheel Mahila Sammelan"

bawre se ik jahan me.....bawra ek sath ho....

Arches national park, UTAH




Bawra man dekhne chala ek sapna
Bawre se man ki dekho bawri hain batein
Bawri si dhadkane hain bawri hai sanse
bawri se karwaton se nindiya door bhage
bawre se nain chahe bawre jharokho se bawre nazaron ko takna

Bawre se is jahan mein bawra ek saath ho
Is sayani bheed mein bus hatho mein tera haath ho
bawre se pair chahe bawre tarano ke bawre se bol pe thirakana

Bawra sa ho andhera bawri khamoshiyan
Thartharati low ho maddham bawri madhoshiyan

Bawra man dekhne chala ek sapna

linked life!

Textile Museum, San jose




Your absence has gone through me
Like thread through a needle.
Everything I do is stitched with its color.

-- W.S. Merwin

The yaksha asks Yudhishtira : What is the most surprising thing?
To which Yudhishtira answers thus:

Ahanyahani bhootaani gacchanteeh yamaalayam
Sheshaaha sthavaram icchanti kimaashcharyam ataha param





This translates loosely into: Everyday many living being die (go to the abode of Yama) and the rest of us see this and yet the rest of us live and behave as if we are immortal.

second version