The brutal murders which Goans heard of but never witnessed, stare at them in the face, as more symbols of this “catching up”, prop up all over. Fancy new high rise apartments, security guards, and strange neighbours whose lives have nothing to do with yours. Monica lived in this Goa and died in it.
It is easy to brand the Monica case as a break down in law and order. But this will smack not just of over simplification but an acute reluctance to see this for what it really is.
At an obvious level, this murder has caught the attention it has because of the profile of the victim. She was young, very visible in the high society of Goa, which looks no different from the high society of Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore et all, and to top it all, she specialized in something very rare – perfumes. Not just wearing them – which she did of course, but creating them. She was a scent creator.
An irony therefore that she has no ‘scent’ of her ‘killer” (accused killer to be legally correct) as he hid on her terrace for two days before forcing into the house, tying her up, shaving, cooking and eating while she lay there and then strangulated her to death, with the possibility of sexually assaulting her.
This could have been anywhere. Delhi, Mumbai or any city you pick. The shock is that this happened in Goa. Many murders and incidents later, those who have lived here still feel that these kind of killings are antithetical to the DNA of the land and its people. For instance the Monica killing bears a striking resemblance to the murder of a lawyer in Mumbai, Pallavi Purakyastha. To quote a report in the news website Scroll “Purkayastha was alone in her Mumbai flat when her security guard Sajjad Mughal tripped the power supply to her home, stole the keys to her home as he accompanied an electrician to seemingly repair the problem, and returned later that night to sexually assault her. When she fought him off, he killed Purkayastha with a knife”.
Now, Goa has indeed caught up with India. And its DNA is changing. The DNA of its core people, especially in the villages, may remain intact. But the “core” gets debatable, as you see a huge influx of wealth and people, massive real estate transactions, and construction of homes where people who have noting t do with Goa’s roots or its DNA live. And when you have this kind of wealth, you create assets and these assets need to be protected. And therefore you need security guards and the rising demand for such guards has led to the spurt of security agencies. And when assets rise and so do rivalries, the biggest asset that needs protection is your body and that has given rise to a whole new class of “professionals”- bouncers, who are in turn provided by security agencies.
Now this brings us to, who are the people who work as security guards or bouncers. While a sprinkling may be from Goa, these agencies are melting pot of travelers from across the length and breadth of India, whose pasts are unchecked. Often they are young, hot blooded unemployed youth, mainly drop outs looking for quick bucks and a slice of paradise. Monica’s ‘killer’ was one of them.
Earlier, there were safety zones. The traditional community or village system where the whole town or village was one family, has given way to gated complexes where the neighbours are unknown. These places are unsafe zones now.
Therefore understanding this is vital before passing this off as a police or security failure. The dangerous fallout of the way in which Goa is growing is evident in Monica’s killing and it is a measure of things to come, when one of the early proposals for a way forward to to strictly implement guidelines for recruiting security guards.
Monica Ghurde’s murder is not result of poor law and order. It is a result of a change of Goa’s order.
