Journalist Priya Ramani displayed courage by publicly claiming that she had been sexually harassed by former editor and Rajya Sabha MP MJ Akbar, who chose to file a criminal defamation suit against her than duck the controversy her disclosure generated. Ramani’s triumph in the suit should inspire women to speak out against men who exploit their need, and dream, for a career to sexually prey upon them. Her steely resolve to pursue the case, instead of opting for a compromise with Akbar, is exemplary, as a verdict upholding his complaint could have had her spend maximum two years in prison, or pay a fine, or both.

Ramani belongs to a growing breed of Indian women who risk their liberty to make India a better place for all, not some, by fighting for the equality of citizens. Days before Ramani’s story made headlines, the Delhi Police arrested Disha Ravi and searched the house of lawyer Nikita Jacob for their alleged role in the toolkit conspiracy, which is claimed to have instigated protesting farmers to fly the Sikh religious flag from the Red Fort on January 26. Climate campaigners both, they are in their 20s, as is Nodeep Kaur, the labour activist whose arrest and alleged torture have invited worldwide condemnation.