As Kerala’s 24th Chief Minister, VD Satheesan took oath on May 18, the premises outside the Central Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, witnessed a humiliation ritual. Rini Ann George, an actor and former journalist, who first hinted at Congress MLA Rahul Mamkootathil’s sexual misconduct, was ridiculed by the crowd, predominantly consisting of men from the party. While several of them hooted and howled at her, some made comments aimed at portraying her accusations as unfounded.
Meanwhile, Rahul was greeted by party workers with mirth, many of them cheering him, although he is out on bail in multiple cases involving charges of rape, forced abortion, and abuse.
This contrasting picture testifies to a concerning trait of mobs– as a civilisation, we may pride ourselves on progress, but the mob still operates on the age-old instinct to protect power and punish women who question it.
The rage against Rini for speaking up first was not confined to the physical premises of the ceremony. It spilt onto social media, with several Congress workers raising harsh criticism against the party’s choice to invite her to the swearing-in.
“When several party workers could not make it in, why was a woman who criticised the party allowed to get inside the hall?” wrote Youth Congress Kannur District President Vijil Mohanan. Vijil’s post can be seen as the voice of the mob, which howled at Rini, and how it views the Rahul Mamkoothathil cases.
While Rahul is still a “misunderstood” young politician in their imagination, Rini is a woman whom the entire party must scorn because she “spoke against it”.
A few questions beg to be asked here: Is it befitting of party workers and leaders to persecute a woman who speaks up, insinuating that she is morally bankrupt? And, is this the price of exposing an elected representative’s predatory behaviour? If yes, what confidence can people have in the party and its workers to continue serving women?
“... Such avatars must be kept under suspicion…Congress is well aware of the consequences of letting such avatars into party offices…,” Vijil further wrote, implying that Rini has deceitful motives, akin to that of Saritha S Nair, whose allegations against multiple politicians including then CM Oommen Chandy’s office led to a political storm. Chandy was acquitted and charges against him were expunged.
“Cautioning” VD Satheesan and the party, another person with the Facebook handle Joli wrote, “She will be the Saritha who the CPM and BJP will launch after five years of UDF rule…” The post goes on to say that Rini will use the photographs with the ministers to eventually “trap” them.
To be clear, it was not on Rini’s complaint that Rahul was booked. She made a public statement hinting at his misconduct, prompting several women to come forward and speak about his alleged predatory behaviour. This included senior women members of Congress as well.
Rahul was subsequently expelled from the Congress, with several leaders, including VD Satheesan, completely disowning him. He is currently fighting three separate rape cases in court and is out on bail. He was apprehended by the police after he went absconding, following the first woman’s complaint. Therefore, the allegations against Rahul are not simply hearsay, though the final judgement is the prerogative of the courts.
Yet, none of this seems to be reason enough for Rini or any of the other women who called Rahul out to be believed, or even given minimal respect.
The absolute, unfounded rage against women who speak up has been a recurring pattern. Even when the allegations against Rahul had begun to surface, social media comment boxes were rife with support for him, cyber-abusing anyone who stood with the survivors.
Apart from the senior party leaders like Shanimol Usman, Thara, and several others, even journalists like Lakshmi Padma, who reported on the cases, are cyberbullied even today.
All of this, in the name of a man whom the party has disowned and the law has put on trial for serious charges.
At this point, it is exhausting and even disillusioning to keep explaining why this is not how a society must respond to women calling out powerful abusers. The reactions and abuse Rini has been subjected to come from a deep-seated cultural memory of how eager we are to chastise women even when they have done nothing wrong.
The danger lies not just in what such chastising does to one woman, but the warning it sends to those other women who are watching. This is a picture of how patriarchy sustains impunity– through everyday humiliations, jokes, jibes, and moral scrutiny– despite the law penalising the men mobs seek to protect. This is the same culture that also incentivises women who perform gender roles, sustain caste hierarchies, and tailor their minds and voices to the liking of the men in control.
This constant pitching of the vamp versus the good woman dichotomy is how even women are conditioned to pick apart those among them who claim their agency and refuse to buckle down.
If a party and its supporters cannot draw a line in such situations and stay firm on where they stand, what exactly does their politics stand for? The newly elected Chief Minister must answer.
Views expressed are the author’s own.