Suhasini Raj is quite a familiar name in the Indian media circle. Apart from being the India reporter of New York Times since 2014, Suhasini has been a key member in exposing widespread bribery among Indian parliamentarians through the daring 'operation Duryodhana' carried out by a Cobrapost-Aaj Tak team in 2005. But Keralites know her for a different reason now. As the woman journalist who attempted to enter Sabarimala temple on the backdrop of the Supreme Court verdict, Suhasini is being scathed by threats, cyber bullying and false propaganda at present. Suhasini proceeded successfully till Marakkoottam, close to the temple, ignoring the protests and abuses from the part of a violent mob. She was manhandled and blocked with a human-wall at Marakkoottam. Stones were also thrown at her. Injured and panicked, she descended Sabarimala amid heavy police protection. In a first following the torment she had to undergo, the senior journalist opens up to Onmanorama about her experience at Sabarimala.
Harassment online and offline
Suhasini's Twitter account is filled with threats, abuses and fake messages about her personal life. While some people posted her residential address in public, some planned to attack her house and relatives. “I wish none of these cyber-threats turn out to be real,” she said.
“The mental pressure rendered by all these is too heavy to cope with. A lot of harassment, abuses, anonymous messages and threats are pouring in,” Suhasini revealed in an exclusive interview. Suhasini's photos are edited, conjoined with those of male politicians and circulated on social media. “They said they will find out the address of my Delhi residence. I have been threatened of getting manhandled and my house getting destructed,” she said.
Reality at Sabarimala
Elaborating her experience at Sabarimala on October 18 (Thursday), Suhasini said that the mobs that gathered all along the hill was violent and aggressive beyond imagination. “It was a scary environment at Sabarimala yesterday. The mob was aggressive and beyond control. They had stones ready with them. I was there to practice my profession and not to provoke devotees. But the mob followed me all along. They grabbed my head and injured me with severe abuses. I was devastated by the vicious situation over there,” Suhasini recalls.
Suhasini asserts that she reached Sabarimala for a purely journalistic purpose and she ended her trek up the hill just to prevent the situation from getting worse. “The air echoed of mantras and chantings. Everyone, even the people who attacked me, called out the names of Lord Ayyappa. I was subjected to severe physical and verbal abuses,” she says.
Rewriting the history
Suhasini was one of the few women who were brave enough to proceed to Sabarimala shrine, amid widespread protests and mob violence. When asked about being a part of a historic struggle to ensure gender equality in Kerala, Suhasini said she was completely unaware of Sabarimala's reality. “I was assigned to cover the situation at Sabarimala during the first worship season after the Supreme Court verdict. I did not even know when was the last time a woman attempted to enter Sabarimala temple.” she said.
Depressed by Kerala's reception
For Suhasini, the mob violence at Sabarimala was just one among her many daring journalistic pursuits. Yet, what distinguishes the Sabarimala experience was the clash between faith and law which took to streets, Suhasini says. “Until I reached Sabarimala, I had been maintaining a very different perception about Kerala - a peaceful place of literates, graced by scenic beauty. What I saw at Sabarimala is exactly the opposite of my imagination. I did not expect this kind of scary reception from literate Kerala,” Suhasini said.
Suhasini said that her experience at Sabarimala cannot be compared with any of her previous operations. “This one stands apart for its extremely violent nature and outright violation of civil rights,” she said.
Her take on the 'faith vs law' issue
The acclaimed journalist views the mob-violence in Sabarimala as a result of citizens' false courage to take law in their hands. “There is a serious confrontation between faith and law going on in Sabarimala. Citizens are defying the constitutional rights to protect their faith. The basic civil rights they should actually value, the SC verdict that should bring about a meaningful change in this society, is being violated in public. There should be a dialogue between the conflicting sides, which is not happening now. The issue needs to be sorted our in a more democratic manner,” she said.
Message to the abusers
Injured and manhandled, Suhasini still holds a soft corner for Keralites deep in her mind. Asserting that she wouldn't miss a second chance to return to Kerala, Suhasini shared her piece of message for Keralites: “India is a democratic country. While I agree with your point that your sentiments should not be hurt; I would like to remind you that there are certain rights constitution guarantees to the citizens of India and especially to the women. Only a healthy dialogue can fix the ongoing hostile situation.”
