The surfacing of a sex video clip depicting former Member of Parliament of the Bharatiya Janata Party, Kirit Somaiya, has become a serious issue in Maharashtra’s politics and in the media. The clip, which was said to be circulating over social media, was shown by a news channel, with explicit scenes blurred, leaving it to the viewers’ imagination on its content.
Several issues come to the fore in the light of the ‘exposure’ of the video clip, which is surely of Somaiya, as his face is clearly seen with whatseem to be expressions of extreme ecstasy. The news channel, which first showed the clip, kept claiming that the video clip was objectionable, without clarifying what is objectionable about the video clip.
Ironically, the channel kept showing the clip repeatedly for over 24 hours, each time stating that the clip is objectionable. The objectionable aspect is the broadcasting of the clip on a news channel, which is watched by viewers of different age groups and often with families, where prudent minds would not watch even soft pornography, whether part of news or otherwise, though many would like to watch such clips on the sly.
The reaction of the news channel was such that the channel has come out with some exclusive news, contradicting their claim that the said video clip was going viral on social media. As is done by most news channels these days, the channel sought reactions of Opposition party leaders, asking them leading question on the ‘expose’ by the channels. The leaders too, unaware of what is good journalism, praised the channel to the skies for its ‘expose’. Well, one thing is for sure that the video clip did expose Somaiya, literally, for a few seconds, who has spent the last several years threatening Opposition party members, especially elected representatives, that he would expose them and ensure action against them by agencies like Income Tax Department, Enforcement Department and Central Bureau of Investigation. Surely, Somaiya did not mean exposure the way he found himself in the video.
Somaiya did succeed in getting these agencies to take action against a sizeable number of such leaders, though in most cases the agencies have not found any substantive evidence against them.
Another issue that comes forth from the video clip is whether the news channel and all the opposition leaders found Somaiya’s indulgence in sexual acts objectionable. There is no evidence, as yet, to show that he had sexually assaulted any woman or had sex with her without her consent or by obtaining consent under duress, which becomes an offence. There should be no objection from any quarters, if Somaiya has a strong libido. He has been naive and an immature leader on several occasions. If he had shot the videos and made them public, that would surely have been objectionable and would have been an offence under the laws.
Somaiya is no longer an elected representative and India does not have a law defining moral turpitude and making it punishable. Prima facie, it seems that Somaiya’s acts are with consent of the partner/s. If that is the case, it is an encroachment on his privacy, which the media must understand. Nobody in society has a right to be the moral police, by deciding on how someone’s personal life should be in the confines of his/her privacy. However, it is true that those in public life need to be careful about their behaviour in public and need to ensure that they are not being recorded in their private spaces. It is true that the threat to privacy is directly proportional to the popularity of a person.
The media has to concentrate on what is in public interest — and has to understand the difference between public interest and interest to public. The public at large may be interested in the private lives of individuals, especially well-known personalities, but that is not in public interest, unless it is misuse of office. A case in point is that of the late N D Tiwari, who at the age of 86 was filmed with three women in his bed, when he was the Governor of Andhra Pradesh. Needless to say, this was misuse of office and he had to step down. As the Governor, Tiwari was at that time a public servant; Somaiya is not a public servant as he is not drawing a salary from the state exchequer.
Even if Somaiya has indulged in paid sex, it is not a criminal offence, though it may not be accepted morally. The attack on Somaiya by the media and the Opposition has lost its power, as Somaiya, in a letter to State Home Minister and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, seeking a probe on the video issue, has stated that he has not sexually assaulted any woman, but has not denied that the content of the video, indirectly accepting that the video clip is true.
Without mentioning his name, but in an oblique reference to Somaiya, the Leader of the Opposition in the Maharashtra Legislative Council, Ambadas Danve, stated in the House that he had received video recordings of eight-hour duration, of the person’s (Somaiya’s) sexual acts. Danve also stated that women had complained to him they were blackmailed into the sexual act. If this is true, the women should come forward and they should be assured that they will be protected and Somaiya would be brought to book. According to Danve, the total viewing hours of Somaiya’s video clips is over 30 hours!
The right-wing moral police, who are vocal on other occasions, are silent on the Somaiya video, as it involves a person of their ideology.
Many should be thankful for the video, as it is a lesson for them to learn from Somaiya’s mistake — he failed to check for hidden cameras during his sexcapades.
The author is a senior journalist and media trainer. He tweets at @a_mokashi
