Many women were allegedly molested during New Year's Eve revelry on streets of Bengaluru. (AFP)
It has been a week since
many women were allegedly molested on New Year's Eve in Bengaluru, denting the city's reputation as one of the safest in the country.
Actors and sports stars have spoken about it and both the state government and the
police have been skewered for their response to the incidents.
The women in the city are in no mood to let the outrage fade out easily though. A group of students have now united and are planning a march in the heart of the city next Wednesday, January 11th, at Brigade Road - close to where the alleged mass molestation happened.
"We feel what happened on New Year's Eve is a culmination of the state of affairs that is present. Because of this, we have started an initiative, called (K)Night In My Shining Armour, a play on the words My Knight In Shining Armour, to get more women, more men, more people who identify themselves with any gender to feel safe on the streets. How do we make people feel safe on the streets? By getting people out on the streets. That is why we started the campaign #IWillGoOut. It has been overwhelming," one of the students, who requested not to be named, said.
A meeting was also called in Cubbon Park on Saturday afternoon to discuss the issue and talk about self-defence.
The women say the march is not a protest but more to increase awareness and solidarity. They are deeply disturbed also but point out that what happened on New Year's Eve was not rare or unusual but something which is a daily occurrence.