It is shocking how a simple accusation can cause disruption in the lives of people, Saravjeet Singh Bedi, is a living example of that. Saravjeet’s life came to a halt after he was accused by a St Stephen’s student Jasleen Kaur of allegedly molesting her. It is over three years now that the incident took place, Saravjeet’s job, his career prospects have been destroyed, his three years have been spent moving from one hearing to another. All this happened because Jasleen Kaur, who turned out to be an Aam Aadmi Party supporter wanted to get some cheap publicity. Saravjeet as pointed out by many onlookers was not guilty and Jasleen in reality had been the one at fault. This fact was not cared for by the media channels which immediately set up panel discussions on national television and started assassinating the character of Saravjeet. One such channel was Times Now, and its host was none other than Arnab Goswami who went ahead and alleged Saravjeet was a criminal without even hearing his side of the story.
Sarajveet was called names ranging from ‘pervert’ and then was badly abused by Arnab Goswami on live television debate. The panellists who tried to defend Saravjeet did not even get a chance to speak properly by Arnab Goswami. The video clip was shown repeatedly on the prime time show which was hosted by Arnab on Times Now. The mental harassment faced by Saravjeet who was not even a culprit in the first place cannot be imagined by anyone else as it stigmatised him and his entire family. This is a sad incident of journalism and journalists gone wrong and where they tried to conduct media trials inside their luxurious studio. Today, when the truth about the incident is out in the open it is high time that Times Now and Arnab Goswami who have since parted ways, come together to apologise for giving a verdict when they were in dark about the facts. Saravjeet deserves an apology from his past employers who discriminated against him, from his friends and family who left him without hearing his side of the story. But the list must begin with journalists such as Arnab Goswami and Times Now who highlighted the matter and blew it to enormous heights.
Jasleen Kaur who had tried to play the victim card back then is the perpetrator of the crime now and must be held accountable for her wrongdoings. Increasingly, there have been instances where laws providing justice from rape, harassment, eve-teasing and dowry are being used to harass men to get cheap publicity. These women who misuse the law should be taken to task and dealt strictly with by the Honourable courts so that a lesson is sent out loud and clear to the womenfolk that feminism does not mean providing extra benefits but equal rights and duties. Misusing those rights should be punishable, for the women and the media houses which indulge in full scale character assassination without getting to the bottom of the matter. Arnab Goswami and Times Now should be made to pay for their faults and the same goes for Jasleen Kaur who is comfortably pursuing her studies in Canada while the man she wrongly accused is fighting hard to make ends meet and prove that he is innocent.