What do the Bulli Bai Deals say about India’s Law & Order System?
You have been reading about it for a few days. You might have even cursed the ‘bloody’ hoodlums behind this atrocious crime. The Bulli Bai app has kickstarted the new year by exploiting hundreds of Muslim women and it has made us question everything from the accelerating Islamophobia in India to the questionable justice system of our nation.
Let’s start from the beginning. On the 4th of July, last year, pictures of more than 80 Muslim women had been uploaded on an app called “Sulli Deals” (“Sulli” is a derogatory term used for Muslim women by right-wingers) for a virtual auction. Notable women journalists, activists, and leaders; women who spoke up and were vocal about their rights in society, were a part of this auction. GitHub, the host of the app, soon took it down, but the damage had already been done.
Conspiracies about the ‘masterminds’ behind this app state that Hindutva right-wing groups might be the ones targeting these women, which is hardly surprising, to say the least. On the same day the auction went live, a Hindu man had mentioned the topic of abduction of Muslim women at a gathering in Pataudi. Last year, a day prior to Eid, a YouTube channel run by “Liberal Doge Live”, a man by the name of Ritesh Jha, ran an “Eid Special,” a “live auction” of Muslim women from India and Pakistan.
Rana Ayyub, a renowned journalist, and activist who was one of the women listed in the “Sulli Deals” auction commented:
“The way they [Hindu far-right groups] sexualise you is the only way they believe they can shame and silence Muslim women online. We are supposed to be ‘oppressed’ in their books, so they think, ‘How dare we speak out for ourselves?’”
On July 8th, an FIR was filed by the Delhi Police after the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) and the National Commission for Women called for an investigation into the matter.
Not a single arrest was made, which perpetuated the “Bulli Bai Deals” 6 months later.
While we were welcoming the new year on a joyous note, more than 100 Muslim women were once again, put up “for sale,” on an app similar to Sulli Deals, “Bulli Bai Deals.”
Although this time, neither the government nor the police neglected this matter. 4 accused have been arrested by the Mumbai Police so far: 21-year-old Mayank Rawal, 21-year-old Vishal Kumar Jha, 21-year-old Neeraj Bishnoi, and 18-year-old Shweta Singh, who is alleged to be the mastermind behind this barbarity, although a man from Nepal named Himanshu Goyal has recently claimed to be the original creator of the app, whose Twitter handle is currently being traced by the Mumbai Police.
In spite of this god-awful crime, Shweta Singh has been receiving quite some sympathy, considering the recent death of her parents. We have quite some culprit saviors in our country, don’t we?
Throughout the course of these months, Muslim women from all around the globe have not only elevated their voices against oppressors but also shown immense support to the women included in the “Sulli” and “Bulli Bai” deals.
Is it enough though?
The government and the media’s silence in the “Sulli Deals” case isn’t astonishing, considering how right-wingers casually hurl comments about Muslim genocide time and again, while the government and media pretend to be ignorant. A few weeks ago, Hindu extremists took a pledge to “wipe out the entire Muslim population of India and make it a Hindu nation” and discussed methods to do so in a conference held in Haridwar. As anticipated, no action was taken against them. Isn’t it ironic that our government would torture thousands of farmers for simply demanding their basic rights but turn their heads away at the mere mention of Islamophobia?
The culprits’ sheer courage to organize such a large attempt to suppress Muslim women in a nation with a population of more than 1 billion, definitely says something about India’s justice system, doesn’t it?
Sayema Rahman, one of the women listed in the “Bulli Bai” app, puts the situation of the law and order system of India in a perfect manner:
“We are not afraid of the culprits; we are more afraid of the government’s silence. When law authorities cannot guarantee just law trials against criminals; when they cannot ensure protection.”
The constant attacks towards minority groups are rooted in systemic violence passed on from generation to generation. No wonder Muslim women all over the world are ridiculed for wearing a hijab or indigenous people are the victims of climate policies.
But the “Bulli Bai” app isn’t a matter of religion, caste, or gender anymore. It is a question of humanity. And as long as we don’t speak up, humanity is a threat.
How do you think India’s justice system is going to handle this case? Will this be a turning point for the Muslim community in India? Let me know in the comments below!
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Until then, take care!
