Many of us have seen the video of a woman beating a cab driver repeatedly in the middle of a road with many people including a policeman watching. The clip went viral and soon the hashtag #ArrestLucknowGirl was trending. There were some who supported the woman’s actions while others called out her shocking behaviour. Check out bystander videos as well as CCTV footage.
Those supporting the woman’s actions point out that the taxi in question appeared to be jumping a red light and that he deserved what he got. The flashing green light indicates that this intersection had a free left. It is not clear whether the cab was looking to go left or to go straight (which would have been a violation). We see the woman and the cab stop almost simultaneously at the zebra crossing. The woman then confronts the cabbie, appears to throw something at the vehicle and then proceeds to slap the man over and over.
Supporters of the woman's action say that the taxi driver deserved this ‘punishment’ for not stopping and not allowing pedestrians to cross. Others were also jumping the signal and this would be a lesson to them as well, according to this view. Some expressed the view that the taxi driver should be fined and/or his license confiscated. Some even thought he should be put behind bars.
Throughout the two minutes or so of the video we see the woman repeatedly hitting the taxi driver. There are people including a cop watching. After a while, someone intervenes and the cabbie seems to be saying that his mobile was also broken. The woman also hits the person who is trying to intervene.
Was the woman right or justified in what she did? According to the police, the woman, identified as Priyadarshani Yadav was scared when a car went past her at a red light and she acted in self-defence. This is clearly not true. The woman’s demeanour is aggressive and belligerent throughout the video, not what anyone would call scared. We see the woman and the car stop almost simultaneously and we see the woman start to attack the man, continuing to hit him for minutes.
It is not clear whether the taxi was going left or breaking the signal to go straight, but even if he was breaking the signal, she had no business to violently assault another citizen. There was a policeman present and it should have been his job to see that the traffic offence was fined or otherwise punished. As a concerned citizen, the woman would be within her rights to demand that action be taken against the cabbie for breaking rules and endangering other road users.
The woman had absolutely no business violently attacking another road user and she certainly should be prosecuted for her unpardonable behaviour. The cabbie should be fined as well; maybe his licence impounded --- along with all the others at the intersection who were also breaking the law.
Many demanding #ArrestLucknowGirl were blaming ‘feminism’ for what happened. People who blame feminism for incidents like this are either deeply ignorant or being deliberately disingenuous. Feminism is about asking for equal opportunity, not about punishing men. But then these are people who disapprove of feminists in general and are constantly looking for reasons to criticize. Let’s be clear, what this woman did has nothing to do with feminism. This is an act of violent bullying; a serious crime that should receive exemplary punishment.
This incident is about a power imbalance. Here is a taxi driver – someone who is routinely harassed by cops, badly treated by customers; in a low paying job where he is probably just able to make ends meet in life. The woman appears to be in a position of power or privilege while the cabbie feels utterly powerless. This is evidenced by the fact that even as he is repeatedly hit and humiliated – the cabbie never once retaliates.
I'm a feminist (I think anyone who believes in equality, fairness and justice is) and I denounce and disown this woman and her actions – completely, without reservation. This woman did what she did not because she is a woman, but because she is a violent, entitled bully – nothing more, nothing less.
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