The case where 3 Muslim women secretly recorded Hindu women in the restroom in Netra Jyoti College in the Udupi district of Karnataka is one where one realises just how easy it is for the media and the Left-Islamist ecosystem to play politics over the safety of women. The dehumanisation of Hindus, especially Hindu women, reached its zenith when the fascist ecosystem came together to package the serious crime as a friendly prank. The narrative soon went from “it was a prank” to “the Udupi case is merely a rumour” after NCW member Khushboo Sundar’s response to the media was taken out of context. One can’t deny that her response could have been more measured and better crafted, however, the desperation of Congress and their ideological brethren to use that statement to downplay the Udupi case was a new low discovered.
Yesterday, a student from the same Netra Jyoti College came on record to talk about the video recording scandal and how the administration of the college has actively tried to intimidate Hindu students in a bid to suppress the case. The student said that these three Muslim women have been recording Hindu women in the washroom for a year and six months ago, when they were caught doing it, the administrator of the college ensured that the case was suppressed.
Speaking to TV9 Kannada, the student said, “This incident was happening for the past 1 year. Post capturing in mobile the Muslim girls were exchanging the Mobile with their Muslim Male friends who were waiting in a car outside the college. The exchange of mobile was happening in the afternoon lunch hour. This was highlighted to the college management but they did not take any kind of action”.
Making shocking revelations, the student also said, “In our College Management, our Administrator is Mr Abdul Khader. He saw these 3 Muslim girls Shafa, Alfiya, and Shabnaz standing and came to us and said, “I have given a beautiful action to the 3 Muslim girls, I have asked them to write 5 times that they will not repeat this”. The student also said that they don’t expect the investigation to yield result since they believe that the phone which was actually used to record the videos have not been given for investigation.
On 27th July, Khushbu Sundar spoke to the media and refused to divulge details of the case, repeatedly telling the media that the matter was under investigation. The media posed a specific question to her, asking if she found any hidden cameras inside the washrooms of the college. To this, Sundar said that there was no hidden cameras and one must not believe rumours.
Since this statement is being used to discredit the entire case and even disregard the direct testimony of the student to TV9 Kannada, one has to deconstruct this before we delve into further specifics of how this case is being covered up. Firstly, it is pertinent to remember that NCW’s Sundar visited the college 8 days after the news of the illegal videography had surfaced. 8 days is a long time for evidence to be removed, especially taking into consideration the fact that there are allegations of covering up the case against the administration of the college and an FIR for destruction of evidence and hiding material information has also been filed against the college administration.
Secondly, the phrasing of the question by the media was also interesting. Sundar was asked if she found any “hidden cameras” inside the restroom. As we discussed, even if there were hidden cameras, the college would certainly not keep them around 8 days after the case surfaced. Further, the case was never about “hidden cameras” inside the restroom. It was about 3 Muslim women using their phones to secretly film Hindu girls. Did the media expect Sundar to find the phones hidden in some hole in the wall in the restroom? Is the media that stupid? Or are they plain malicious to ask this question and they play it up in the media to ensure that this selective statement can be used to discredit the case? Since the answer would go into the realm of speculation, one is compelled to ask the question and leave it upon the readers to make up their minds.
As the cabal used this statement, which even Sundar should have been circumspect about making, to discredit the case and shift from calling it a ‘prank’ to a ‘rumour’, the real questions that arise from this case have been left unanswered – by the college administration, the police, Congress which is in power in the state and the media which is focussing on whitewashing the case instead of ensuring justice for the women wronged.
Here are 10 questions about the Udupi case that remained unanswered by the college administration, the police and the Congress party, which governs the state of Karnataka:
1. TNM quoted ASP of Udupi Siddalingappa, saying, “We looked through the phone and didn’t find any such video. We thoroughly investigated the matter, and there is no evidence that the video was shared. It was a one-off incident in the college and had no communal angle to it. The purported victim doesn’t want to file a police complaint.” In this, the police make a few assertions. One that they looked through the phone and they found no video. Now, given that the police only investigated the case after outrage on social media and it had been days since the reported crime, it is only logical that the videos would not be found on the Muslim women’s phones. In fact, the obvious assumption is that they would have deleted the videos when the investigation has been delayed for days and the police would widen the search net instead of dismissing the case.
Further, it is pertinent to note that the students of the college have come forward and specifically said that the administrator of the college made the Muslim women delete the videos and suppressed the case. In such a scenario, how did the police expect to find the videos on their phones still? Given the logical flow of this case, one has to ask why did the police not widen their search net instead of simply dismissing the case publicly and aiding the narrative that would potentially deny victims justice.
2. The student who spoke to TV9 Kannada said that phones were being exchanged by the accused Muslim women with Muslim men outside the college. They said they would come on their bikes during lunch hour and the Muslim women would exchange phones (which had the videos of Hindu women) with them. They would then take the phones away. The student also categorically stated in specifics that “The videos were being shared with Muslim men from Ucchila”. If this student has spoken to the media and made these assertions, two important questions arise – a) did the police speak to the Hindu students of the college to ascertain what was happening? Had they spoken to the students, since they say they conducted a thorough investigation, this statement would have been made to the police as well. If they did, and acquired this testimony, then on what basis did they say this was a one-off incident, that they found no video and that no videos were forwarded by the girls? If they did not acquire this testimony, then how did they claim to have conducted a “thorough investigation”? b) the second question that arises is that if the Hindu students are saying that the Muslim women were exchanging phones with the Muslim men who came outside the college, which phone has been investigated by the police and which phone was confiscated by the college administration? Is it the same phone which was used to videograph the Hindu women in the washroom or a different one?
3. As mentioned earlier, if phones were being exchanged and the Muslim women were taking videos of Hindu women and exchanging that phone itself with the Muslim men who would come outside the college, how would the police find evidence on whichever phone was handed to them? Even if we assume that this particular phone was used to videotape the Hindu women in this one instance, we have reasoned how the police were unlikely to find videos on this phone. Were these inquiries made during the supposed ‘thorough investigation’?
4. The student on record has made a clear assertion – the administrator of the college – Abdul Khader – suppressed the case and intimidated the Hindu students. He is claimed to have asked them to forget about the case because it was a prank, despite the fact that the 3 Muslim women were doing this for a year. In fact, the allegation is that he suppressed the case when it happened 6 months ago as well. In such a scenario, why have the police not taken Abdul Khader in for questioning? Has he been investigated and asked material questions?
5. The police have clearly jumped the gun in this issue by declaring that it was a one-off incident, given the revelations by the college students on video. If so, why did they do so? Was there political pressure to suppress this case, given that Congress is actively trying to call this case a rumour?
6. Why is the Congress party trying actively to compromise the dignity of Hindu women and insist that this case was a ‘rumour’? Is there a political angle in the case or they are simply trying to shield the culprits and the college administrator? Is it merely a case of them trying to ensure that there is no controversy in their state even at the cost of the lives and dignity of Hindu women?
7. While Khushbu Sundar ended up making irresponsible statements that were then twisted to delegitimise the case, it is also pertinent to ask why it took NCW 8 full days to take cognisance of the case? Why did Sundar not realise that there were such pitfalls in the case and that cognisance should have been taken sooner? And if she did not, why did she not give a detailed response as to what her interaction with the Hindu students in the college revealed, if at all.
8. It is evident that the FIR against Rashmi Samant, who took to Twitter to raise the Udupi case, was based on the fake news allegations that were made by propagandists and Islamist apologists like AltNews’ Mohammad Zubair. The allegation was that she had spread “fake news” about the videos being forwarded to community groups and Muslim men. This was based on the police saying that there was “no communal angle” to the case and that they checked the phones where they found no such videos. After the FIR filed by the police against the administrator of the college for destruction of evidence and hiding material evidence, and the revelations of the student (that phones were being exchanged with Muslim men for a year), will the FIR against Rashmi Samant be retracted by the police? If not, is there political pressure to ensure those raising the Udupi case are persecuted?
9. If the Congress government in Karnataka is truly as fair as it claims to be, will it file an FIR against those who were spreading misinformation about this case just to whitewash this case? This would, of course, include their own functionaries, leaders and those they ally with officially, including AltNews’ Mohammad Zubair. It is unlikely, of course, but the question at least must be raised.
10. The most important question to my mind is if the police and the administration is looking into another crucial revelation by the college student to TV9 Kannada. The student said that after the incident, the phone was returned to the accused Muslim women by the college administrator. If the phone was returned to the students, then which phone has been handed over to the police? If it is so, did the police interrogate Kader and the students to confirm this aspect?
These 10 questions are crucial to unravelling the case unfolding in the Udupi college. It is pertinent to understand that there are several suspicions of a larger nexus at play victimising Hindu students. These suspicions have only grown stronger after a college student spoke to the media and made revelations about how phones were exchanged with Muslim boys, how this crime has been perpetuated for a year and the complicity of the college administration. While the Congress government is actively trying to call this case a “rumour”, it remains to be seen what the result would the police investigation yield and would it lead to the Hindu women, violated by the accused women, getting the justice they deserve.
