India is a place of often brutal contradictions and ironies. People will feed sugar and rice powder to ants but kill their own daughters or daughters-in-law without any compunction.

Just look at New Delhi today. There are more policemen and para-military personnel than you can shake a finger at. They are all massed to keep a rein on protestors who are trying make sure that the death of Nirbhaya, as a TV channel named the December 16 rape victim, doesn’t go in vain. Had but one policeman checked the bus that apparently passed some check-posts, the tragedy could well have been averted. A young life would not have been wasted.

The most horrid irony about rape and sexual abuse of children is that in the majority of the cases, relatives or people known to the victim are the villains. The conspiracy of silence keeps these goings-on under the wrap. What this often ends up doing is turn the victim into an offender. The silence must end, nay, broken. Victims must be given a voice and the perpetrators shamed out of the woodwork. For every Nirbhaya, hundreds go unreported, unlamented

As for the situation on hand, the best tribute that can be paid to ‘Nirbhaya’ will be to process the case quickly and bring the guilty to book. The entire trial and appeal process must be fast-tracked and punitive punishments handed out. This must be done as a demonstration of state’s will to hurt where necessary. This must be followed up with strengthening the various pieces of legislation to give them more teeth --- for time-bound trials, quick justice and punishment --- so that there is fear of the law.

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