Court Asks Man to ‘Get Rakhi Tied’ By Woman He Allegedly Molested

The court ordered that he must promise to “protect” the complainant and give her a gift of Rs 11,000.

(Photo: Erum Gour/The Quint)

The Indore bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court granted bail to an accused in the sexual harassment case, on the condition that he would visit her on Raksha Bandhan and request her to tie a rakhi on him. The court ordered that he would promise to "protect her" and give her a gift of Rs 11,000 as a part of the custom.

WHAT DID THE JUDGE SAY?

According to NDTV, Justice Rohit Arya said:

“The applicant, along with his, wife shall visit the house of the complainant with Rakhi thread on 3 August 2020 at 11 am with a box of sweets and request the complainant to tie the Rakhi band to him with the promise to protect her to the best of his ability for all times to come.”

WHY IS IT PROBLEMATIC?

Raksha Bandhan is observed across India to celebrate the bond between a brother and sister. Justice Arya’s comment in this regard reinforces the patriarchal notion that women need ‘protection’ from men, and a woman tying a rakhi to a man (who is not her sibling) ensures a platonic relationship between the two.

Vikram Bagri was accused of entering the 30-year-old woman's house in Ujjain, on 20 April and was charged under section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) of the IPC.

In the order passed last week, the accused was granted bail after furnishing a bond of Rs 50,000. The court order also directed Bagri to pay Rs 5,000 to the son of the complainant for purchase of clothes and sweets.

(With inputs from NDTV)