Should nine seats be reserved for men on the Pink Bus too?
Maybe nine seats are exactly what the equality movement needs.
It was almost time for office, the sky was turning grey, and rain looked ready to ruin the morning. Young Sabit stood by the roadside, anxiously watching every bus that passed. Then, finally, a Pink Bus appeared.
He stepped forward, ready to get on, only to hear the female conductor say, "Sorry, no space."
"But it's a bus," he protested. "And I thought there were nine reserved seats for us?"
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The conductor shook her head, "Not during rush hour. If anything happens on the bus, I can't take responsibility, please."
The young man looked confused, "But what about equality?"
"Maybe next bus," she replied. "Or, you guys have your own buses, right?"
And with that, the Pink Bus pulled away.
This was a fictional back and forth. But BRTC's new women-only "Pink Bus Service", complete with female drivers, conductors, and passengers, has barely hit the roads and suddenly a section of men has discovered a burning passion for equality, fairness, and naturally, memes.
This is forcing the women ask a few questions: Why do men need a separate bus? Why do they need reserved seats? Why should they get special treatment? What happened to all that talk about porda? If free mixing is such a serious concern, shouldn't men simply travel with their wives instead of demanding a bus of their own?
How could men possibly tolerate such blatant discrimination?
And surely the same rules of "modesty" and "safety" should apply as well. Because if nine seats are enough to trigger this much concern, maybe nine seats are exactly what the equality movement needs.
Maybe that is exactly what is bothering everyone: men will now have to quietly squeeze into crowded pink buses, make room for everyone else, tolerate unwanted touches and harassments, and pretend it is all just part of the daily commute.
Give women a handfull of buses, a little breathing space and a safer commute, and suddenly equality is facing a national emergency.
Imagine a female conductor looking at the female bus driver and saying, "Ustad, daine beda manush, halka chap den", or, asking a male passenger, "Apni ki misogynist vai? Aijonnoi beda manush uthaina."
Would that be fair enough?
