Fear Rules

OUTLOOK/CNN-IBN POLL ON THE AARUSHICASE

Fear Rules

Hardly any trust for police, media. Child safety major worry.

F

ourteen-year-old Aarushi Talwar andHemraj, the domestic help of the Talwars, were found murdered on the morning ofMay 16 at their Noida residence. The case still remains unsolved, and Aarushi’sfather Rajesh Talwar is in CBI custody. Research organisation GfK conducted apoll for Outlook/CNN-IBN to gauge the awareness and interest in the case amongurban Indians and assess the social impact of the double murder. In all, 1,274respondents from Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Calcutta and Hyderabad werepolled. Those surveyed included parents (equal samples of fathers and mothers)and teenagers.

The poll revealed that there was high awareness about the incident. A majority of respondents felt that the media had over-sensationalised the case and that this could interfere with the investigations. Seventy per cent of those polled also felt that the image of the local police had taken a beating. And a huge majority (78 per cent) were of the view that the Aarushi case had raised concerns about the safety of their children.

Should parents be made accountable for the behaviour of their children and should they be punished in case the child commits a crime?

	Yes	No	No Response
All	46	54	0
Delhi	44	56	0
Calcutta	21	78	1
Mumbai	7	93	0
Bangalore	66	33	1
Chennai	54	46	0
Hyderabad	87	13	0

* This question was put only to parents

Do you think that teenagers should have unchecked access to the internet and mobile phones?*

All	60	40	0
Delhi	8	92	0
Calcutta	97	2	1
Mumbai	77	23	0
Bangalore	56	44	0
Chennai	51	49	0
Hyderabad	66	34	0

* This question was put only to parents

Do you feel you are very different from your children in terms of their values and lifestyle?*

All	56	43	1
Delhi	30	70	0
Calcutta	56	42	2
Mumbai	64	36	0
Bangalore	60	40	0
Chennai	61	39	0
Hyderabad	67	33	0

* This question was put only to parents

Who over-sensationalised the story? English media, non-English or both?*

	English	Non-English	Both
All	15	31	54
Delhi	2	40	58
Calcutta	2	38	60
Mumbai	9	20	71
Bangalore	26	21	53
Chennai	26	24	50
Hyderabad	31	36	33

* This question was put only to those who said the media over-sensationalised the case

Do you think unchecked access to the Internet and mobile phones among children leads to crimes such as Aarushi’s murder?*

	Yes		No
All	61		39
Delhi	36		64
Calcutta	83		17
Mumbai	27		73
Bangalore	57		43
Chennai	85		15
Hyderabad	76		24

* This question was put only to parents

Do you feel media reports about Aarushi’s murder have been fair to the young generation?*

All	65		35
Delhi	43		57
Calcutta	63		37
Mumbai	69		31
Bangalore	27		73
Chennai	89		11
Hyderabad	88		12

* This question was put only to teenagers

Do you feel the older generation understands what the youth today feels or wants?*

All	52		48
Delhi	74		26
Calcutta	63		37
Mumbai	48		52
Bangalore	37		63
Chennai	26		74
Hyderabad	74		26

* This question was put only to teenagers

Percentage who said they knew of the Aarushi/ Hemraj murder case*

	Parents		Teenagers
All	32		34
Delhi	96		96
Calcutta	63		52
Mumbai	81		92
Bangalore	83		88
Chennai	10		12
Hyderabad	27		38

* All figures in percentage. The questions following were put only to those who knew of the case.

In your opinion, will the role of the media interfere directly or indirectly with the investigation and delivery of justice?

All	69		71
Delhi	81		91
Calcutta	54		73
Mumbai	81		64
Bangalore	66		46
Chennai	57		76
Hyderabad	77		75

In your opinion, has the media over-sensationalised the story?

All	77		67
Delhi	96		77
Calcutta	77		55
Mumbai	63		69
Bangalore	84		67
Chennai	74		69
Hyderabad	68		67

Some believe that stories like this one are exploited by the media for their selfish gain in readership or viewership. Do you agree?

All	58		60
Delhi	52		64
Calcutta	45		61
Mumbai	70		71
Bangalore	53		48
Chennai	46		37
Hyderabad	81		86

Does the handling of the case reduce your confidence in the local police and investigating agencies like CBI?*
	Police		CBI
All	70		47
Delhi	75		41
Calcutta	72		51
Mumbai	79		29
Bangalore	59		43
Chennai	56		48
Hyderabad	78		68

* This question was put only to parents

Have you/your parents taken any special steps for the safety of yourself/your children after Aarushi’s murder?

	Parents		Teenagers
All	47		21
Delhi	75		9
Calcutta	23		10
Mumbai	38		19
Bangalore	49		29
Chennai	63		33
Hyderabad	39		21

Aarushi’s murder has also raised concerns about keeping a full-time domestic help in the house. Do you feel it is unsafe or is it not necessarily a security risk?

	Unsafe to keep domestic help		Not a security risk
All	69		31
Delhi	63		37
Calcutta	74		26
Mumbai	65		35
Bangalore	45		55
Chennai	78		22
Hyderabad	88		12

Has the Aarushi murder case raised your concern and that of your family about the safety and security of your children?

All	78
Delhi	90
Calcutta	60
Mumbai	85
Bangalore	74
Chennai	82
Hyderabad	81

Fingers are being pointed at specific communities from which domestic helps come. Do you feel it is justified?

All	43

Delhi

35

Calcutta

18

Mumbai

49

Bangalore

51

Chennai

61

Hyderabad

46

Have you got your domestic help’s antecedents verified by the police?

All

11

Delhi

22

Calcutta

16

Mumbai

3

Bangalore

2

Chennai

14

Hyderabad

6

What steps have you taken for the safety of your child/children ?

Base: Parents who have taken specific steps

ALL

Del

Cal

Mum

Bang

Chen
Hyd

441

117

39

57

74

91

63

1

Spending more time with children

53

50

49

54

58

68

30

2

Not leaving your child alone in the house

42

54

26

23

28

71

19

3

Monitoring mobile calls and SMSes of the child

13

17

10

11

16

6

4

Not hiring full-time male servant at home

11

10

18

11

26

3

2

5

Discussing issues with school teacher/ counsellor

8

0

11

19

7

0

6

Dropping child to school/coll

8

0

41

0

3

0

30

7

Monitoring e-mails and chats on the internet

2

0

15

2

0

Business

Sports

Others

Fear Rules

Hardly any trust for police, media. Child safety major worry.