Crimes on rise

A mother is stabbed by her son. Horrible! Every now and then, a shameful incident makes headlines. The dangerous prevalence of criminal acts is symbolic of a diseased society. Frequent cases of rape, murder, burglary, physical and verbal assaults have marred the sacred social landscape of Kashmir.

The increasing footfall of crime is a serious matter. The whirlpool of crime has the potential to drag everyone into its deadly trap. Presuming crime to be confined to tragedy and trauma of the victim is a misconception. The tentacles of such disturbing acts are connected with wider part of the social living. The incursion of crime pollutes the social environment and thus injects an element of insecurity and uncertainty. Apprehensions amplify and trigger anxieties.

The meek surrender of society to the convoy of crime is condemnable. The society is handcuffed and tongue-tied.

Who is to be blamed for the social degradation? Is family failing? Is parenting all about conceding to the demands of the children? What is true education – education that generates employment or education that is humanizing? When the curtains are raised, reality is exposed. All the institutions come under the radar of scrutiny. The vital institutions curbing waywardness have failed to exert their influence to check the criminal tendencies.

Family – as the primary institution is entrusted with the responsibility of orienting young members towards positive attitudes and a healthy outlook. Are parents failing the obligation to monitor their children’s psycho-social development? Is moral development pushed to back seat and exempted from parenting responsibility? Broken bonds in the family weaken its integrity. Too much consideration for material well-being at the cost of moral values, social ethics and civic sense offer a fertile ground for the seeds of crime to germinate and grow wildly.

Neighbourhood is dead. The idea of individual living and well-being proves counterproductive. In an ideal neighbourhood, individual actions used to remain under the ambit of informal surveillance. The influence generated by neighbours greatly mattered. But the individualized mode of living has eroded the institution of neighborhood and rendered it dysfunctional.

The menace of drugs induces erratic behavioural changes. A drug addict becomes immune to considerations of right or wrong. In a hallucinated state of mind, the breach of conduct trespasses all social and moral boundaries. That is why a society can never afford itself to be uprooted by the cyclone of drug menace. The evil is to be nipped in the bud.

Excessive social media usage exposes the user to many risks than advantages. Teenagers are more vulnerable to obscene and objectionable content. Limited usages under controlled supervision can minimize the negative consequences.

What is the panacea to growing crimes? Back to the basics. Parenting cannot be outsourced. Parents must inculcate humane values among the young children. A supportive family environment means much more than just fulfilling the material needs and demands. Love, warmth, trust, empathy, care, cooperation, patience, fellow feeling, and gratitude etc are the true ingredients that make a good living. The fountain of these virtues is a precious capital. If family and education as an institution become bankrupt, the deficiencies starve the personality. The fragility gets expressed in many forms including ant-social behaviour and criminal acts.

Shrinking social spaces and blocked communication channels need to be repaired. Gadgets and virtual world cannot compensate the natural quest of humans to socialize. Gadget has a cost, but no compassion. Devices are expensive but devoid of empathy. Lifeless items can impress, but not inspire.

The lost humane ambience of our social living is to be retrieved. In the mansion of materialism, humanity feels haunted by the ghost of greed. It is time to introspect deeply. The increasing trend of crimes has to stop. Or else the society will find it difficult to survive.

Bilal Kaloo, Assistant Professor, Department of Teacher Education – North Campus, University of Kashmir