A married 26-year-old man, accused of molesting a woman, has been asked by the Madhya Pradesh High Court to get a ‘rakhi’ tied by her on the occasion of Rakshabandhan.
In an order passed by the court on 30th July, while granting bail to the accused, Vikram Bagri, the court also asked him to give ₹11,000 to the woman as part of a customary offering made by brothers to sisters on the occasion and seek her blessings.
The court’s order read:
The applicant, along with his wife, shall visit the house of the complainant with rakhi thread/band on August 3 at 11 AM with a box of sweets and request the complainant to tie the rakhi band to him with the promise to protect her to the best of his ability for all times to come.
All of this when Vikram Bagri has been accused of forcefully entering the 30-year-old woman’s house in Ujjain and molesting her. He has been charged under section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the IPC.
While we are still shocked at the decision of the court, netizens too are discussing how horrifying it could be for the woman.
MP HC orders lady survivor of molestation to tie rakhi on accuser as pre-condition for HIS bail!
— Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) August 3, 2020
Bench ordering this needs to be put in jail & the keys thrown away
Is SC taking suo moto cognisance of this madness, MiLords? https://t.co/Zf1YEuiTEd
yuck!
— #Reject_CAA_NRC_NPR_Aadhaar_EVM_FascistBJP (@2talkon) August 2, 2020
Tie rakhi to molester?
This is how justice is dispensed?https://t.co/ymZdAwAanX
Correct me if I am wrong. Trying to say it in simpler words: A molester has been given the responsibility to protect the survivor. And it is not even from a novel or drama but straight outta Madhya Pradesh High Court.https://t.co/23G7cRB0SU
— Qadri Inzamam (@Qadri_Inzamam) August 2, 2020
The court has asked the man, accused of sexual assault on a woman, to “protect her for all times to come”…?
— Roopali Srivastava (@RoopaliSriv) August 3, 2020
How messed up is that?
How horrifying for the woman..
Get Rakhi Tied By Woman You Molested: Madhya Pradesh High Court’s Bail Condition For Man https://t.co/17N9xE7Fgc
This is wrong on so many levels.
— MobeenRaza_Official (@mobeenrb) August 2, 2020
Why should molested tie Rakhi to molester?
Why would it be ok to have the molester become part of the family?
What if the molester had molested a child too young to tie a Rakhi?
What next?
Friendship band for harassment?
Roka for attempted rape?
What the hell… Brother sister relationship is pure…Rakhi is a promise to protect eachother from every evil …How can a girl tie rakhi to her molester..what kind of judiciary it is?
— Tania Mitra (@Taniithebong) August 2, 2020
Further the court has also asked him to give ₹5,000 to the complainant’s son to buy clothes and sweets.
I wonder if it’s really that easy to not only forgive the man who molested her but also tie rakhi to him. Also, what kind of precedent is our courts setting for men accused of molestation?
