Prafulla Lodha’s third rape FIR raises tough questions about power, protection, and justice | Image: puneripages.in
By Prashant for PuneriPages.in
Another complaint. Another survivor. Another pattern too familiar to ignore.
This week, Prafulla Lodha, reportedly an aide to a senior BJP leader, was booked in his third rape case. According to the Times of India, the latest FIR, filed in Pune, details allegations of coercion, intimidation, and abuse of power. The complainant says Lodha threatened to get her fired if she didn’t comply. Let that sink in.
While these are still allegations — and the law presumes innocence until proven guilty — this case, like the two before it, points to a deeper issue we can’t keep brushing under the carpet: the unchecked power wielded by people who hide behind political networks and the silence survivors are forced into.
Table of Contents
The Latest Case: A Story of Fear and Coercion
The survivor in this case reportedly knew Lodha through work. According to the FIR, she was allegedly raped under threat — her job used as leverage. It’s the kind of manipulation that thrives where power goes unmonitored and systems fail to protect the vulnerable.
To be clear, this is not about politics. It’s about power — who has it, how they use it, and who suffers when they abuse it. Whether the accused is from BJP, Congress, or no party at all, the concern remains the same: how easily some can silence others because they know no one’s watching — or no one will act.
A Pattern Emerging: What About the Previous Cases?
This isn’t the first FIR against Lodha. It’s the third. Earlier complaints also alleged sexual misconduct and coercion. While the legal status of those cases is still unfolding, we — the public — deserve to ask:
- Why does someone facing such serious accusations continue to roam free?
- What is being done to ensure the survivor’s safety and justice?
- And how many complaints does it take before the system wakes up?
The ‘Honeytrap’ Narrative: A Convenient Distraction?
Some reports mention a “honeytrap” angle. Let’s be clear — this term gets thrown around too easily, often to discredit survivors. It’s crucial that such claims are investigated seriously, but they should not be weaponized to shift the focus from the core allegations of rape and coercion.
So What Now?
Every time a story like this breaks, we follow the same routine: outrage, debate, then silence. But what if we actually listened this time?
What if we believed survivors enough to protect them? What if we questioned the people in power, not just the accused, but the enablers who let these patterns continue? What if we refused to be numb to it?
This isn’t just about Prafulla Lodha. It’s about every survivor who’s ever been told to stay quiet because the man she’s accusing “knows people.”
Final Thought
You don’t need to be a lawyer or an activist to care. You just need to be human.
Let’s stop asking survivors why they didn’t speak up sooner. Let’s start asking why the accused had so many chances to do it again.
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