Power & Sexual Harassment: A close relationship?

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What is power? Some define it as having status and money. Some define it is having the ability to change policy decisions of countries. While many others define power as that thing which can change your life from one direction to an altogether different direction. Whatever it may be, everyone wants some level of power to be able to exert their influence over others. All of us want money, fame and status. But then, there are some who desire power even more than the others. And they try to do everything in their ability to milk their status. Whether it is greed or pursuing shady deals or even sexually abusing women, they make use of the power they have to get what they want.

Whether it was Tarun Tejpal, Phaneesh Murthy, Justice Ganguly or even Asaram Bapu, all of them have certain things in common. They are all successful and famous in their own ways. They all have lots of money and fame. If one was the guy who changed the face of journalism another was an IT head who everyone loved for his work and ability to take decisions. But then, somewhere down the line, things got the better of them and they lost themselves in the lust of power. So I analysed, the three main reasons why guys like these end up using women as a tool.

Using Status and Power: They know that they can use the power they have to escape any problem (personal or financial) they face in life. And that includes even sexually harassing women. In fact, none of them think that what they are doing constitutes harassment. If for one it is drunken banter, for other it is all about curing someone in the name of forcing himself upon her. They know how to catch their unsuspecting victims off guard. Whether it is warning them on the consequences for their job or making them believe that doing all ‘this’ would lead to promotions, they know how to play their games with elan.

Satisfying their lust: It’s not that only men who have power have the lust for other women. But the fact is that men at the top know that they can even get away with murder. And so they try to get women by hook or by crook. They know that they won’t get reported or if even if they do, they’ll escape. Phaneesh Murthy was sacked. But he has earned so much that he has enough money to enjoy for the rest of his life. Asaram has hundreds of cases against him. But there are millions who still follow him and support him. Would he fear anyone then?

Exploiting the system : How many people really report such incidents in public? How many big shots actually face a trial or let alone even go to jail? Women are terrorized so much so that they are even scared to talk about such incidents. And that’s how these big shots exploit the system day in and day out.

In a nation where money, power and status speak, the sexually abused and courageous women are finally speaking out and being the change. But for a large part, the mentality that if you have the power, you can do what you want still remains.