Village shuns India rape victim

By Amarnath Tewary
Muzaffarpur, Bihar

Shabina's husband dumped her after she had her second child (Photos: Prashant Ravi)

At 21 years of age, Shabina Khatun has been married, allegedly raped by a relative, deserted by her husband and in-laws and ostracised by her community.

The plight of the deaf girl in the northern Indian state of Bihar mirrors the treatment meted out to women by the state and society.

Shabina - also known as Shabiya - has been ostracised by people of her Chandkiwari village in Muzaffarpur district for becoming "impure" following the birth of a child after the alleged rape by her uncle two years ago.

Half of the over 3,000 people of remote Chandkiwari are Muslims.

Assisted by a local NGO, Shabina, who is unable to speak, lodged a case against her uncle with the local police station two years ago. The accused man has been absconding ever since.

Her husband, Sharif, who works as a mason in the western Indian state of Gujarat, dumped her after hearing the news of her alleged rape.

Then her entire village followed suit by ostracising the family.

Shunned by society, Shabina lives with her ageing parents, four brothers, and two sons - one of them from her marriage - in a two-room thatched house.

'Worse than hell'

Her father, Shamsher Ali, is a daily wage worker who is lucky to earn 600 rupees ($13) a month. He suffers from tuberculosis.

Federal government schemes to help the poorest or the poor haven't reached this ostracised family - they paid 1,500 rupees ($33) to the village headman to avail of such a scheme three years ago, but nothing happened.

"What can we do? Where can we go? We have to slip out when it is dark to complete our ablutions to avoid the gaze of villagers. This is worse than hell," says Shamsher Ali.

Shabina's father suffers from tuberculosis

Life is difficult - a neighbour Noor Alam says even "getting food daily is a luxury for the family".

But why was Shabina Khatun deserted and abandoned by her husband and community for no fault of hers?

"We have our own law and it will decide the fate of the girl and the rapist," says village cleric Mohammed Faizur.

"Shabina has become impure and she and her family will remain ostracised until her future is decided according to Sharia laws."

He seems to have doubts over whether Shabina was actually raped.

"How can a mute girl accuse someone of rape," he asks.

Shabina's mother Agibulnes says that the relative had alleged raped her daughter in their absence.

"We knew it through her body gestures and language," she says.

Shabina's husband also does not care about his wife any longer.

Losing hope

"He wrote to us once saying that he would not accept his 'impure' wife," says Shamsher Ali.

Shabina's father was also beaten up by relatives of the alleged rapist after he lodged a report with the police.

But finally there is some hope for this unfortunate girl and her hapless family.

The police attached the properties of the alleged rapist late last month after a local NGO highlighted the plight of Shabina.

Shabina has been left to fend for herself and two sons

"We will soon arrest the accused and see that justice is done to Shabina," says local police official Lallan Pandey.

But the police say they can do nothing about the ostracism of the family, apart from trying to convince the villagers that this was wrong.

The NGO has also adopted Shabina's second child and named him Azad, which means freedom.

Shabina's family has lost all hope in the state and society.

"It is good that Shabina is deaf and dumb. Otherwise she would have died hearing the painful comments of the villagers," says her mother.