Kolkata Rape & Murder: President Murmu Laments ‘Collective Amnesia’ About Many Rapes, Says ‘Enough Is Enough”

New Delhi: President Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday lambasted rapists and lamented the endless crimes against women even after the Nirbhaya gangrape and murder in Delhi, 12 years ago.

In her first public statement following the rape and murder of a junior doctor in Kolkata, Murmu said she was “dismayed and horrified” to learn about the “gruesome” crime at the state-run RG Kar Medical College & Hospital on August 9.

“What is more depressing is that it was not the only incident of its kind… it was part of a series of crimes against women. Even as students, doctors and citizens were protesting in Kolkata, criminals remained on the prowl elsewhere. The victims include even kindergarten girls. No civilised society can allow daughters and sisters to be subjected to such atrocities,” the President said in a signed statement shared with PTI.

Criticising the “obnoxious collective amnesia” that much of this country develops and which allows women to be harassed, assaulted and brutalised on a daily basis, the President red-flagged the “objectification of women by a few that is deeply ingrained in such people”.

She highlighted a “deplorable mindset… that sees the female as a ‘lesser human being’, ‘less powerful’ and ‘less intelligent’… and as an ‘object’,” Murmu stated.

“Enough is enough. No civilised society can allow daughters and sisters to be subjected to such atrocities… In 12 years since Nirbhaya (gangrape and murder of a Delhi woman in 2012), countless rapes have been forgotten… this collective amnesia is obnoxious,” the angry President continued.

“In December 2012… there was shock and rage. We were determined not to let another Nirbhaya meet the same fate. We made plans. These initiatives did make a difference to an extent… but our task remains unfinished as long as any woman feels unsafe,” she said.

“In the 12 years since, there have been countless tragedies, though only a few drew nationwide attention. Even these were soon forgotten. Did we learn our lesson?” Murmu questioned, lamenting that each incident was buried and forgotten after a few weeks of protest.

“This collective amnesia is as obnoxious… Only societies scared to face history resort to collective amnesia… India must face history squarely. Let us deal with this perversion comprehensively… to curb it right at the beginning,” Murmu advocated.