Daily travails of vulnerable Delhiites

Kaleidoscopic gates of variegating Dilli

Dilli (दिल्ली) is like a proverbial onion with multiple layers, wherein each layer is more pungent—and juicy—than the other. Rising through class, power, and status in this great city is like pealing through each astringent scale of an onion. Dilli is also an indurate city. Those living on the periphery of the society have the least chance of survival. They are mercilessly garroted by unemployment, poverty, and substance abuse just like tunics are ruthlessly thrown in garbage. Cutting through the bulb comes at the cost of your tears but that is the price you must be willing to pay to live in this bitter sweet city. Dilli wasn't built in a day. It is one of the oldest cities in the world and a witness to the games of thrones since time immemorial. It is whence Pandavas governed the great lands of Aryavrat from quondam capital of Indraprasth. It is the second most populous city in the world, the largest city in India (1484 sq.km), and the only city-state in India. Most importantly, it is the capital of largest democracy—kleptocracy, oligarchy, plutocracy, kakistocracy, autocracy, aristocracy, hereditary monarchy—in the world.

There are multitudinous distinctions for this great city. Not all its dimensions may be positives. Dilli—like any other decrepit capital—is a great cesspool into which all kinds of criminals, agents, politicians, and drifters are irresistibly drained. Sometimes it is not a question of who, but a question of who knows. From Indraprastha, the ancient capital of Pandavs during Mahabharat times in Dvapar Yug, to Dilli, the national capital territory (NCT) of India today, Delhi has always been the 'Dehleej of power'. Prospering for thousands of years on the banks of Holy River Jumna (Jamuna/Yamuna), the city is nearing over-saturation with a population of over 22 million. Ever expanding roundedness of Dilli—enveloping all that comes into its touch—is not entirely fortuitous but tells a foreordained story of its own. Its divers surviving gates and temples—like tree-rings—espied how this city has grown from era to era, strength to strength, and size to size. It is a confluence of cultures where each erstwhile historic capital still co-exists with the other. Many rulers have come and gone over hundreds of centuries long history of Delhi, but Dilli has survived, and so has its natives' insatiable thirst for power.

Bygone good ol' days

I grew up in Delhi when it was still a respectable and secure place to live, except during 1984 pogrom. Which one—multifarious or multi-nefarious Delhi—you may ask? Read on, I say. It was the tail end of a period when Delhi was still relatively smaller, although rapidly expanding, and sparsely inhabited enough, mostly domiciled with native families spanning multiple generations, who knew each other especially by lineage and business background. Depending on your locality, everyone knew each other in the neighborhood. Naming your business after family name like 'Family name & sons' was considered a matter of prestige and a way to pass on the legacy. It was a time when family values were given importance. Children knew their राम राम (Ram Ram), नमस्ते (Namaste), and धन्यवाद (thank yous). It was the only time when roads turned curfew-like empty and whole city came to standstill during a peacetime because people were glued in front of TVs religiously watching Shri Ramanand Sagar's Ramayan or Shri BR Chopra's Mahabharat on Doordarshan. It was a time when familial background carried a certain respect and ancestral history was a matter of great pride, which kept progenies on ethical and moral track. As a consequence, youngsters even respected unknown elders on the street, unlike today.

I grew up in a time when honesty and probity in life was not unheard of. Once my uncle, who was visiting us from the US in early 90s, forgot his wallet in a local Delhi taxi. To my uncle's pleasant surprise, the taxi driver voluntarily came back an hour later to return his wallet to him in good faith with all his cash dollars and credit cards intact. Seeing scrupulosity of this good Samaritan, my uncle recounted a comparable, how he once forgot his bag—seems like a habit—in a public restroom on a highway in the US and how to his utter dismay it was missing when he returned to the spot to recover it. Although aforesaid may sound contrary to today's realities, but I am not talking of some time from centuries ago, rather only a couple of decades back. Then what changed in Delhi? Why has it degenerated over the years? Or were the state of affairs always like they are today; may be were just less visible? Did we miss any red flags or warning signs? Why am I sounding nostalgic? Will tell you why yours truly is a concerned Dilliwala, who is worried about how insecure is Dilli and how vulnerable are we Delhiites.

There are Lies, Damned lies, and Statistics, and worse AAP lies

Crime rose sharply during 49 days misrule of Aam Aadmi Party

It pains me immensely to see security situation of my city deteriorate over past few years. Something has seriously gone awry in the last decade of misgovernance and situation is getting worse everyday, especially since December 2013 when pathological liar and anarchist Arvind Kejriwal led AAP & Congress alliance formed a controversial coalition government in Delhi by backstabbing mandate of gullible voters.

Recreant-par-excellence Kejriwal first told fibs and fables, and spread canards to deceive and ruse Delhi people to vote for his naxal AAP, and then later Mr. Holier-than-thou exploited this golden opportunity and deserted people for his selfish political ambitions leaving them in the lurch to fend for themselves. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. A true leader faces tough challenges up front and does not throw in the towel like a quitter when faced with his or her first challenge. Sanctimonious Kejriwal ran away from his responsibilities because he couldn't take the heat in the kitchen when his unconstitutional shenanigans were rightly opposed. He couldn't even govern—forget properly—a small city-state like Delhi for 2 months but wants to become the leader of the greatest free nation in the world.

The daily throes

Everyday we Delhiites get harassed either by the government or someone from the public. This is not to say that there were no crimes in Delhi before; just that people have become more belligerent and emboldened while doing crimes now. Earlier crimes used to happen in dark alleys late at night. Now crimes happen in broad daylight in crowded areas and Delhi Police chooses to run away, literally. Driving in Delhi is like driving in a war zone and is no better than driving anywhere else in India. You never know when, and not if, you will get into an accident. God forbid, when you do get into one, then be the first one to shout the loudest, or be ready to take all the blame, because it is a first movers advantage game, unless the other side has reinforcements. Sickening, right?

Patience is not part of anyone's vocabulary anymore. Delhi people are so impatient that you can't even make a U-turn on some street peacefully without being bullied with wild horns and abuses. Antsy drivers would rather waste 10 minutes by blocking an exiting parked car than have courteous self-control to yield to others and let everyone be on their way in 2 minutes. Unyielding Me-first commuters are willing to squawk and waste everyone's precious time by causing a Mexican standoff at an intersection with a broken traffic light or by going that extra feet ahead of stop line, rather than showing discipline by following the rules and saving everybody's time. Sometime, somewhere in the past, wanting a chance to overtake became a right and inability to do so when desired became matter of hurting people's ego. Even petty issues like arguments over parking are increasingly turning homicidal. Everyone is like a walking talking tinderbox. People have so much pent up anger, which explodes like a volcano on undeserving innocent victims at a drop of a hat.

Delhi saw 24564 prosecutions for drunk driving and 1693 road accidents in which 1725 people died in 2013. According to the data compiled by road transport and highways ministry, three out of ten accidents in the Capital end up killing somebody, while roads in other big cities such as Mumbai, Kolkata or Bangalore are much safer. Just to put these facts into perspective, three times more Indians die in road accidents in Delhi annually than during the whole Kargil war (527 killed; 1363 wounded). We should be ashamed of ourselves if we call Delhi a 'world class' city with such alarming number of road fatalities. Don't we Indians deserve a better life and a better chance at life than this?

Rape capital of India

No place and I mean no place in Delhi, whether north or south; east or west; crowded or secluded; lighted or dark, is safe anymore. Even Chief Minister's constituency of New Delhi is not secure. For criminals, age is no bar. Whether you are a 5 yrs old girl or 51 yrs old woman, no one is safe, as sexual assaults have been equally brutal on children as they have been on adults. If you think bestial Delhi gang rape and fatal assault of 23-years-old female physiotherapy intern on December 16, 2012 was an aberration or anomaly, then think again! The infamous 2002 Khooni Darwaza gang rape case was a gruesome precursor to sadistic brutality that happened a decade later in 2012. On November 15, 2002, a fourth year female student of Maulana Azad Medical College (MAMC) was gang raped in front of her college near Dilli Gate in broad daylight. The girl was pulled by four young men inside Khooni Darwaza, a monument just in front of MAMC in the heart of the capital. Two of the four accused, aged 13 and 14, stood at the entrance of the monument while two others, Rahul and Amit, allegedly held a knife to the student's throat and raped her on the terrace. The incident took place about 500 metres from the ITO crossing, which is located next to the police headquarters. The DCP in charge of this area sits just 300 metres away near Delhi Gate. All four, residents of a nearby slum, were convicted in 2005. Both the convicts, Rahul and Amit, tried the usual trick to take the easy way out and escape the wrath of justice by claiming themselves to be juveniles but fortunately they were declared as major following bone marrow ossification tests.

Bestial gangrape in December 2012 is not an isolated case. It was preceded by an equally savage rape and murder case of fiendish proportions. On February 9, 2012, a 19-year-old girl was on her way home in Qutub Vihar along with three female colleagues from Cybercity Gurgaon where she worked as a data entry operator. A red Indica car pulled over sharply with three men in it and their intentions were clearly hostile. Her colleagues panicked, but she rebuked the men, telling them in no uncertain terms to leave. The three men dragged her into their car and sped away. They, Rahul (27), Ravi (23), and Vinod (23)—all neighbours of victim—had confined and brutally raped her for the next three days in an open mustard field in Rodhai village in Haryana's Rewari district. They then left her to die but not before horridly mutilating her body, which was found by police four days later. While seeking death for the convicts, the prosecution had highlighted the horrific violence meted out to the victim. For the next three days after abduction, convicts constantly beat her up with car jack and wheel pana, burnt her with cigarette butts, gouged her eyes and mutilated her face with screwdrivers, inserted a broken liquor bottle in her private parts, poured acid over her eyes and her face, and finally left her to die. They singed her private parts with a hot screwdriver to remove evidence of rape. She begged for water, they gave her acid. It took four days before she finally died a slow and painful death. Her fault? Ravi and Rahul were brothers and had planned to take revenge on the girl as she had rejected Ravi's advances. Fortunately, all three were convicted on February 13, 2014 and sentenced to death on February 19, 2014 by the Dwarka Court of Additional Sessions Judge Virender Bhat vide case 91/13.

Nirbhaya (pseudonym), the victim of infamous December 2012 Delhi gang rape was—unfortunately—not so lucky as her most brutal assaulter was declared juvenile and he dodged with a lenient sentence of mere three years at some rehab home by being convicted under the toothless Juvenile Justice Act. The fact that over 70 inmates have escaped during various breakouts at these rehabs aka juvenile justice homes since December 2013 tells us about the seriousness of the program. According to the police chargesheet, the 'juvenile'—also a slum dweller— had allegedly subjected the 23-year-old physiotherapist to sexual abuse twice, once when she was unconscious. He extracted her intestine with his bare hands, shoved an iron rod in her, and suggested she be thrown off the moving vehicle devoid of her clothes. He was the cruellest of all six convicts but escaped severe punishment only because he was 170 days short of turning 18, and regrettably even the Honorable Supreme Court of India found no reason of sending this beast to face regular trial like other hardened criminals. Today he is living a good life in Palace of Safety [sic]. Even though both February 2012 and December 2012 incidents were equally macabre, in spite of that, the 'adult' murderer rightly got gallows in former case while the 'juvenile' murderer got all the luxuries of life at a rehab in latter case. Yes, welcome to the Bizarro World of Indian justice system!

हम शर्मशार हैं कि कपिल सिब्बल
चाँदनी चौक से सांसद हैं। - निवासी

Congress led UPA government has been so devoured of urgency and responsibilities that while, as a reactionary measure to get protesters off its back, it hurriedly announced on February 28, 2013 the setting up of a special Nirbhaya fund for women's safety with a corpus of ₹1000 crore, but the same shameless Central government has not spent a single paisa from the fund till date. Worse, this clueless socialist government falsely believes that merely enacting new laws and throwing more money at this dreadful problem without any proper road map, vision, and accountability will solve it overnight. No wonder it took lame duck Prime Minister Manmohan Singh 10 days after the fatal rape of Damini (pseudonym) to wake up from his habitual slumber, but only to make a fool of himself. "Theek hai" he asked after stolidly reading through his one minute long jejune speech, probably the only honest part of his peroration. Even our Delhi government has been no less callous than its Federal counterpart. While former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit reluctantly started the new 181 Nirbhaya helpline after shedding crocodile tears to salvage her image, her successor bhagoda Arvind Kejriwal hammered last nail by closing the same helpline a year later.

Crux

I am not sure what may be the exact reasons for this dreadful rise in criminal behavior, inhumanity, road rage, and hit and runs. Crime graph in Delhi saw a steep hike with a staggering 20000 more criminal cases being registered in 2013 vis-à-vis 2012. Is alarming security situation in Delhi an upshot of influx of migrants from other states or countries; change in demographics; steep rise in unemployment; lack of civics education; city's population density reaching saturation; incontrollable corruption; sky rocketing inflation; domiciliary, behavioral, or generational shift of natives; insociable impatience; slowing economy; etc? It may be a combination of any of these reasons or something else, but all rational reasonings fly out of the window when such crimes cross over from anonymized figures on paper to personal experiences, and that's when it really hurts. Over the past few months my family, relatives, and friends have gone through some agonizing experiences, which have vexed us.

One of the most common safety tips that is talk of the town these days is how it is not wise to drive around in Delhi with your bag visible on rear seat and should rather be kept hidden in car's trunk. This even if the car has an occupant in it irrespective of time of the day. One evening, a senior citizen relative of mine was on his way to Panipat and his driver stopped his car at a red traffic light near intersection of Outer Ring Road and Sant Nagar Road in North Delhi. Suddenly a Sardar ji knocked on his car window and informed him that someone was doing something suspicious to his car's left rear tire with a sua at previous red light near by. Acknowledging the information, he drove off but a few hundred meters later noticed that his car's tire in fact had a puncture. His driver moved the car to curbside to inspect the damage. It was a dark but not a secluded area as there were many cars on the road and traffic was moving slowly.

As the driver started to replace punctured tire, a shabby looking young man walked up to my relative and persistently offered unsolicited help. My relative continually refused any help and shooed him off. Just then my relative's instincts kicked in and he remembered another similar ordeal he had heard of during some interaction with his friends. He remembered how a father-son duo had a similar flat tire and they had to pull their car aside in some unknown part of Delhi. While son changed tires, father stood guard of their car. A group of unknown young men walked over and distracted father in some conversation, while one of the accomplices stole their bag from rear seat. My relative noticed similar movement around his car with a group of young unknown men in their early twenties walking towards his car. He shouted at the first person who had approached him and threatened that person of a police complaint by pointing at a policeman standing nearby. While those men backed off, he asked his driver to hurry up and took out his office bag from rear seat to keep it in the trunk. Unanticipatedly, a stone struck his leg and hurt him, while a bunch of pebbles showered from the ditch next to the foothpath. He noticed that the same young men were now incontinently throwing stones at him, his driver, and his car. Realizing their end game was to draw him and his driver to run after them so that their accomplice could break into the car, he quickly shouted that he was calling the police and started loudly talking his cell phone as if he was talking to the cops. Fortunately, those thieves ran away and my relative, all rattled and disturbed, drove off to his destination while thanking God for his and his driver's safety. Just imagine, these highwaymen were so bold that they did this even though there was police standing nearby and it was a crowded street. God forbid, if they were carrying a weapon or knife, consequences would have been disastrous.

In another incident, a kinsman of mine was driving through Ashok Vihar when a couple of bikers aggressively surrounded his car at a red traffic light. They pulled him out and complained that he had hit one of their friends' motorcycle. When he replied that no such event happened, amazingly, an angry mob of men promptly assembled taking bikers' side and harassed my relative to pay up for fictitious damages. It seems that it was some sort of a gang, which had broken into groups with different responsibilities. Wherein one group was on a lookout for unsuspecting victims at some distance and once a victim was chosen, this group followed him or her on bike. Then once victim entered into gang's area, he or she was confronted. That's when the other group of ruffians joined in acting like curious bystanders who voluntarily got involved to demand justice for fake victim biker as if they were mere good Samaritans. Sounds like a one off case? Nah!

It was a cold and foggy January night early this year when one of my relatives visited the famous Prachin Hanuman Mandir, Marghat Wale near Kashmere Gate. Finding a parking spot near this ancient Hindu temple is always a hassle due to dilapidated infrastructure under the flyover next to it despite of the fact that it is an important heritage site in Delhi. Visitors always have to be on a lookout for smackies who steal cars' side mirrors to fund their habituation of drugs, since finding food is no problem for these beggars as devotees generously distribute prasaad or hold langar. One can't even peacefully visit a temple anymore, without carrying baggage of troubles in mind. What sad times are upon us! Anyways, since fog was getting dense by the hour, he quickly made his way to the car after doing the prayers and drove off towards Shyama Prasad Mukherji Marg. As he waited for a green light at the intersection of SPM Marg and Netaji Subhash Marg, which is only a few hundred meters from Shri Hanuman Temple, a visibly fuddled biker knocked on his car window and complained that his two-wheeler was touched by this car. There were three men riding this scooter and none were wearing any helmet, both of which are violation of the law. They were flustered and angrily abusive. He—also a senior citizen—told them, they are mistaking him for someone else as he just left the temple and street was empty all the way, and they should not misbehave with him, at least respecting their age differences.

He briskly drove off thinking it was all over, but shortly realized they were still chasing him. As he hesitatingly stopped on the next red traffic light, the same ordeal happened again, only this time the harassers were even more infuriated. Thinking the situation may get out of hand if he engaged them, he ignored them while impatiently counting every second he waited for the light to turn green. It was the longest 2 minutes traffic light, ever. As the wise men say, when in trouble, Sankatmochan Bhagavan ji to the rescue. Recalling that nearby street usually has a mobile Police Control Room (PCR) van present, he took that turn while hooligans followed him. Luckily there was police check post on the street, seeing which the men turned around and went away.

These are just few of many ordeals—tip of the iceberg—that we, the common law abiding citizens, go through or face everyday without any fault of ours. I haven't even mentioned the countless incidents of mugging, cash snatching outside banks, and chain/purse snatching by rowdy bikers that happen daily in Delhi. I don't even want to get started about how police harassed my family to run from pillar to post just to register a simple FIR (first information report) about our car being stolen from a posh Delhi neighborhood. That day we learned that Dilli Police is with you, for you, always, to torture you just when you need them (for consolation and justice) the most! I can write a whole volume on bedevilment in mazelike government offices for getting basic services; on how tormentingly hard it is to even get a simple marriage certificate made or get a misspelling corrected on a death certificate in Delhi, even though some of these basic services are supposed to be delivered through e-Governance initiatives. Just extrapolate these hardships to what millions of families living in Delhi experience daily, and you will know how insecure is Dilli and how vulnerable are we overcredulous Dilliwalas.

Have you gone through any similar experiences? Please share your views in the comments section below.

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List of shootouts and road rage in Delhi for petty reasons:

1. August 21, 2014: A property dealer was fired at by three men over a minor car clash in Patel Nagar, Delhi. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tD2AB32AtKQ

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