Columnist Shefali Vaidya, who has often been on the receiving end of abuses on social media, yesterday again took to Twitter to talk about how she has been facing sexual harassment and receiving threats to her kids.
I get abused daily, get called a ‘paid troll’, there r at least 4 parody handles dedicated to me, people have made FB pages in my name using pics of sex workers, I have had to complain to the cops TWICE coz of threats to my kids. Wonder why they are so scared of a ‘housewife’?
— Shefali Vaidya (@ShefVaidya) May 8, 2018
To that, a journalist associated with The Times of India justified the attacks as ‘taste of her own medicine’ for taking on the celebrities who tried to malign Hinduism.
Oh so she is getting a taste of her own medicine? Telling people to “hit where it hurts most” to celebs who don’t align to her ideology. Hatemongers like her should remember, what goes around comes around.
— Rachita Prasad (@rachitaprasadET) May 8, 2018
The ‘hit where it hurts most’ part Prasad is talking about is a tweet by Vaidya where she called for the boycott of films of Sonam Kapoor, Swara Bhaskar, Kareena Kapoor and others who tried to bring a religious twist to the heinous Kathua rape case.
Dear Hindus, if you have any self respect or dignity left, PLEASE do not watch any movie that stars @ReallySwara, Kareena Kapoor, @humasqureshi Kalki Koechlin, Sonam Kapoor and all other placard wala B grade actresses. Hit them where it hurts.
— Shefali Vaidya (@ShefVaidya) April 16, 2018
However, as evident, ‘hit them where it hurts’ is a figure of speech and Vaidya is not really calling for physical violence. The sexual harassment and threats she receives, are real. Hence, Prasad’s justification as ‘taste of her own medicine’ appears like she is cheering the harassment.
When she was called out, she backtracked and shifted goalpost.
I know it’s not literal. But it ads fuel to the already charged troll brigade who don’t know their limits. Nobody deserves to be threatened, hatemongers or otherwise. https://t.co/9EDsOE1B5m
— Rachita Prasad (@rachitaprasadET) May 8, 2018
How can anyone justify rape threats or threats to family. Limited point I was making is people need to stop spreading hate on social media, irrespective of degree or threat and people involved. Nobody is justifying the threats here.
— Rachita Prasad (@rachitaprasadET) May 8, 2018
This is not the first time journalists have cheered harassment of right-wing women, just because they have opposing ideologies. Recently, The News Minute’s editor in chief Dhanya Rajendran was called out for her insensitivity for using tears rolling down the cheeks’ laughing emoji to show her happiness and amusement at Sadhvi from MP being harassed.
