The recent incidents in Mangalore, young girls being thrashed by goons for not following "Indian culture" has opened up the divide deeply rooted in Indian society. The talk about morality is just a smoke screen for actual issue that is gender inequality. For years Pubs and Bars have been a male bastion, till then there was no protest about this being against our culture. When women started visiting pubs and bars often with men, conservative India has disapproved this, revealing the gender inequality that exists. Women in urban India try to break out of the four walls and try to assert themselves where as conservative India desperately wants their girls to live within the well-defined wall of social norms
The other divide is the two India's we live in one which enjoys the fruit of economic liberalization, which has been a factor in allowing people to shed the conservatism. Now compare this to the people in the rural Indian who have been untouched by the economic growth and are clinging on to their conservatism. Politician are also cashing in on this divide. Instead of condemning these ghastly acts politicians are siding with the goons and talking about stopping the growth of "Pub Culture" and "Mall culture". Politicians are just trying to please their rural vote bank.
Times are changing and India is also transforming both economically and socially. The clash between the reactionaries and liberals will continue.
