It is a sad reality of the 21st century that even today, we live in a predominantly male-dominated environment. Despite having proven themselves capable of excelling in various roles, women are to date struggling to establish their rightful place in society. Most of the trials and tribulations that women have to endure have their roots in the largely chauvinistic and regressively patriarchal ideals that have been deeply ingrained in our thinking.
In this “man’s world”,, certain professions offer even more challenges for a woman to survive in than others. The fast-paced and demanding world of journalism is one such profession that, till the recent past, was thought to be better suited for men. In 1994, a dedicated and talented journalist Priya Ramani emerged to shatter this glass ceiling and became a well-recognized name in the field. She soon found herself facing one of the most disturbing and vicious types of attack on her womanhood, namely sexual harassment. The person responsible was MJ Akbar, the editor of the newspaper company she was employed for then. Despite having indulged in such a heinous act, he became a prominent political leader and even became a Union minister. However, the offensive attack on her could not break Priya Ramani’s indomitable spirit, and she continued to pursue her passion for journalism. She first penned down details of the vile incident that had occurred in her past in an article published by Vogue magazine in the year 2017. Despite having the courage to relive the traumatising incident while publishing the article, she found herself bound by societal fear and hence could not bring herself to name the perpetrator.
#MeToo emerged as a widespread movement in 2018 against the countless sexual predators who were allowed to escape and shed the liability of facing the repercussions of their actions. It was a show of solidarity from women worldwide for their peers who had to suffer through the horrifying ordeal of sexual harassment or abuse at any point in their life. The knowledge that they were not alone in their quest for justice inspired many women to speak about the repressed traumatic incidents they had to face. It was during this era of social awakening that Priya Ramani found and reconciled with her inner voice of strength. She decided to speak up and tell the truth about the man who was then serving the country’s government in a notable position. Priya Ramani thus removed the shield of anonymity that had been afforded in her prior recounting of the harassment with Vogue and publicly named MJ Akbar as the person responsible. One can only imagine the immense courage, grit and determination it must have taken to name and shame such an important political personality. It was an inspiring act of women empowerment, as she made a conscious choice to stand up for what was right, despite the possible negative implications it could have for her in society. Her decision to bravely expose the perpetrator catalysed for several other women to find their voice. It led to a positive domino effect wherein several other instances of MJ Akbar’s misbehaviour towards women began coming to light. Following her confession, almost 20 other women came forward about the harassment and abuse faced by them at the hands of MJ Akbar. Priya Ramani thus paved a new and empowering path for women who were victims of sexual harassment by inspiring them to follow her lead and not allow the men who had treated them so wrongly to get away scot-free.
Seeing his empire of dishonesty crumble, and after being forced to retire from his cabinet position, MJ Akbar sought to shake and injure the credibility of Priya Ramani’s bold confession. He filed a defamation suit against her, alleging her claims to be baseless and detrimental to the goodwill earned by him over the years. In response to the suit, Priya Ramani rightly stated that this legal action was a transparent attempt to intimidate her and to deter other women who were victims of similar abuse at the hands of prominent persons from ever standing up against them. MJ Akbar left no stone unturned to create a highly unnerving environment during the defamation trial. Despite all this, Priya Ramani stood her ground and established the veracity of the allegations levelled by her. The witnesses produced by her satisfied the Court regarding the identity of her perpetrator. Since the statements made by her were proved to be accurate, MJ Akbar lost his legal standing to claim defamation, and she was acquitted by the Court of all charges. The Court also reiterated that the filing of this defamation suit was merely an attempt to penalise her for speaking up against abuse, and to allow that would be to disrespect the very essence of the Indian judiciary.
Following her acquittal, Priya Ramani expressed gratitude and vindication on behalf of victims of sexual harassment all over the world. She continued to emphasise that this was not just a personal victory for her but a victory that bound together all of womankind. It is only through such strong-willed and courageous women that we can hope to see a change in the masculine oriented structure of our society to finally give women the esteemed place they deserve.
Originally published at https://www.fuzia.com.