Women Safety
Women Safety
Women Safety
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"There is no chance of the welfare of the world unless the condition of women is improved. It is not possible
for a bird to fly on one wing."
- Swami Vivekananda
The barometer to the progress of a nation is its treatment of its women
- Swami Vivekananda
Introduction
Thousands of years ago, Indian women had enjoyed high status. Gargi, Maitreyi, and other women of Vedic
lore illustrate the high status Indian women enjoyed in ancient times. The tradition of Brahmavadinis,
women celibates pursuing intellectual studies for life, existed in ancient India. Indian women, who have played a
big role in moulding our culture, civilization, arts, religion, have also handled statecraft from the time of
Draupadi to Chola Royal women, from Rani Padmini, Rani Jhansi and many others, to Indira Gandhi
something which no other society in the world can possibly boast.
Indian freedom movement was driven by the symbol of Mother India and devotion to her in the song Vande
Mataram. In India, from ancient times, Female Divinity has equated women with power. And, God as
confluence of man and woman (Ardhanareeswara) symbolized gender harmony. But unfortunately,
contemporary Indian women continue to face discrimination and other social challenges and are often
victims of abuse and violent crimes. Manifestations of violence include physical aggression, such as blows of
varying intensity, burns, attempted hanging, sexual abuse and rape, psychological violence through insults,
humiliation, coercion, blackmail, economic or emotional threats, and control over speech and actions. In
extreme, but not unknown cases, death is the result.
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Frequency of Crimes
Time Period
offense
Every 3 Minutes
Every 9 Minutes
Every 29 Minutes
Every 77 Minutes
Dowry death
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Institutional Failures
1. Less conviction rate in crimes against women and delay in delivery of justice.
2. Poor enforcement of laws related to women safety.
3. Poor gender sensitization of law enforcing agencies like police, judiciary etc.
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Constitutional Provisions
The Constitution guarantees to all Indian women equality under Article 14, no discrimination by the State
through Article 15(1), and equal pay for equal work under Article 39(d). In addition, it renounces practices
derogatory to the dignity of women under Article 51(A) (e), and also allows for provisions to be made by State
for securing just and humane conditions of work under Article 42.
Statutory Provisions
Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act was passed in 1956. However many cases of trafficking of young
girls and women have been reported. These women are either forced into prostitution, domestic work
or child labour.
In 1961, the GoI passed Dowry Prohibition Act, making the dowry demands in wedding
arrangements illegal. However, many cases of dowry-related domestic violence, suicides and murders
have been reported.
Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1987 was passed to prohibit
indecent representation of women through advertisements or in publications, writings, paintings,
figures or in any other manner.
Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 came in 2006.
In 1997, in a landmark Vishakha judgement, the Supreme Court took a strong stand against sexual
harassment of women in the workplace. Recently, government passed Sexual Harassment At
Workplace Act 2013.
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B. Workplace
C. Domestic Violence
D. Dowry
In India even in the 21st century, women cannot step out of their house at any given time, assured of
her physical and sexual safety. Everyday women in this society face more problems than men. The fear
of violence and teasing restricts a womans anatomy, curtails her mobility and her ability to work and
participate in social activities. Even today in India, women cant move at night in secluded places and
even at daytime at crowded places like public transport etc.
Rape is the fastest growing crime in the country today and as many as 18 women are assaulted in
some form or the other every hour across India. The gangrape of 23 year old paramedical student
inside a moving bus near a posh Delhi locality has undoubtedly shocked the nation to its core. Mumbai
watched with shame as an ugly mob attacked women on New Years Eve. In Latur a 14 year old was raped and
killedbyfouryoungmen.In Konarkfourmenwerecharged withdragging awoman outofabusandgang raping
her. It is an ordeal simply to file a police report and the investigations thereafter have been stories of
apathy and down right humiliation meted out to the victims.
Equally horrific are news reports of foreign tourists being sexually assaulted. AnAmericanwas molested in
Pushkar, a British journalist raped in Goa, Canadian girls attacked in Kumarakom to list the few instances. It
looks like that India as a nation has ceased to know how to treat women as human beings who have a
right to dignity and safety. The crime against tourists is against our culture of atithi devo bhava .
After the horrific event of Nirbhaya death, govt appointed Justice Verma Committee which came with
the recommendation as depicted below in the picture.
Indian Penal Code 1861 (Four new sub-sections in Section 354 have been added. It has been
tabulated below).
Indian Evidence Act, 1872.
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973: Amended to provide for a woman officer to record
evidence from a woman against whom certain offences have been committed.
Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.
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Section
Offence
Punishment
326A
Acid attack
326B
Attempt to
Acid attack
354A
Notes
354B
Act with
intent to
disrobe a
woman
Imprisonment not less than 3 Only protects women against anyone who
years but which may extend to "Assaults or uses criminal force to any woman or
7 years and with fine.
abets such act with the intention of disrobing or
compelling her to be naked."
354C
Voyeurism
354D
Stalking
For
first
conviction,
imprisonment not less than one
year, extendable upto 3 years
with fine; and on a second/
subsequent conviction, with
imprisonment for not less than 3
years, a but which may extend
to 7 year with fine.
Imprisonment not less than one
year but which may extend to
three years, and shall also be
liable to fine.
Is Harsh Law Effective In Acting As Deterrence? If Not, What Is The Way forward?
The December 16 gang rape led to widespread outrage that forced the Central government to enact tougher
anti- rape laws. But, the next question is whether such strict law can reduce the crimes against women. Criminology
research has established that it is the certainty of punishment, and not its severity, that deters people from
committing crimes. The effectiveness of laws does not lie in how harsh they are but in how successfully they
are enforced. Thus a harsher anti-rape law is no answer, certainty of punishment is. While crime rates are
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increasing, the conviction rate is declining. In 1971, the conviction rate of IPC crimes was 62%, but by 2010, it
had declined to 40.7%. In the case of rape, it was as low as 26%. Add to this the number of cases pending in
court and the fact that it takes years to settle them. This scenario has to change if the law is to be made effective.
Another reason why such crimes continue to occur is our mindset. The cultural norms and traditions that
flourish in our patriarchal society undermine the dignity of women. What really needs to be done is the
moral overhauling of the minds of the masses by means of education and awareness. The actual need of the
hour is a revolutionary change in the mindsets and conscience of Indian men so that they stop seeing women as
objects of sexual pleasure.
Since societal attitudes will take time to change, the police as well as parents and teachers need to draw on the
broken windows theory of criminology. According to this theory, small acts of deviance, if ignored, can
escalate into more serious and major crimes. Do not ignore incidents of eve-teasing or stalking on the grounds
that youngsters are entitled to some indulgence or of domestic violence because it is a family matter.
B. Safety at Workplace
Womens workforce participation has decreased from
37% in 1993-94 to 26% in 2009-10 in rural areas. For
urban areas it decreased from 17% to 14%. The
victimization of women at workplace together with
patriarchal mindset has affected percentage of women
participation in workforce. As many as 17% of working
women in India have experienced sexual harassment at
their workplace, according to a survey conducted by
Oxfam India.
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The National Commission for Women prepared a Code of Conduct for the work place and circulated
the same to all ministries, educational institutions, public and private sector undertakings and various
NGOs for information and implementation. The guidelines highlight that it shall be the duty of the
employer to prevent or deter the commission of any act of sexual harassment at workplace would
include unwelcome sexually determined behaviour by any person either individually or in association
with other persons such as eve teasing, unsavoury remarks, jokes causing embarrassment, innuendo
and taunts, gender based insults or sexist remarks and unwelcome sexual overtones in any manner,
touching or brushing against any part of the body, molestation or displaying pornographic or other
derogatory pictures or sayings.
The University Grants Commission has formulated a code of conduct for students and staff
of Universities.
The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has taken action to ensure that all affiliated
schools and educational institutions abide by these guidelines.
All Ministries have set up Complaints Committees to look into such matters.
The GoI recently passed Sexual Harassment At Workplace Act 2013 in parliament on September 2012.
It is a welcome move, even though it comes 15 years after the landmark VishakaJudgement in which the
Supreme Court categorically said that harassment at workplace is a violation of right of gender equality
and right to life and liberty, thus violatingArticle14,15,21.
In many cases, it has been found that the committees within the organizations were set up only when
there were serious allegations of sexual harassment. Many working women point out that, even if there
is an enquiry committee, does anyone really bother to find out what happens to the victim when the
enquiry is going on? She is an object of curiosity, sympathy, disdainful glances or simply isolated by
her colleagues. The work environment where sexual harassment occurs has hierarchy, norms, and
constraints that profoundly affect the way people behave in that setting.
The situation at home is worse. Instead of sympathizing with her plight or standing by her, the attitude
is one of distrust and suspicion or often humiliation and shame.
Certain individuals use their positions of relative power to engage in sexual interactions. This type of
behaviour clearly constitutes sex discrimination.
Male ego problems, sexual perversion, sexual obsession, widow-hood etc is said to be some of the
reasons for their harassment.
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Limitations
1. The majority of the female workforce is in the unorganized
agricultural sector. This is where there are problems in the Act. The
Acts definition of the unorganized sector, taken from the National
Commission of Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector Report, is an
enterprise owned by individuals or self-employed workers and
engaged in the production or sale of goods or providing service of any
kind whatsoever and where the enterprise employs workers, the
numbers of such workers is less than ten. The number of workers
was mentioned in NCEUS definition because enterprises employing
over 10 were covered under the provisions of Factory Act. Thus, this
definition of the unorganized sector is more applicable to small or tiny
enterprises in manufacturing, trade or service sectors.Along with this,
the NCEUS had very specifically included agricultural sector
enterprises and its workers within the unorganized sector. The
specification of workers to be less than ten would effectively remove
landlords and rich peasants owning large tracts of land and employing
over
10 agricultural workers from the ambit of the law. It is essential to end
any ambiguity in the definition by specifically including farms and
agriculture and related work in the Act.
2. The Act lacks clarity on the inclusion of the armed forces and all
paramilitary forces within its purview. With the increasing
number of women being employed in the defence services, there is
no reason why they should be excluded.
3. If a complaint is found to be malicious or a woman has produced a
misleading document, she is liable for punishment. This will
discourage victims from filing complaint as she risks losing her job.
4. The Bill has a specific clause that prohibits publication of the identity
of the accused even if he is found to be guilty of sexual harassment.
One can understand if the concern is limited to protecting the
identity of the victim or witnesses or even the respondent during the
pendency of the inquiry. Men like Gopal Kanda, or those in high office
guilty of such actions, will no doubt be relieved at such legal
protection afforded to their public persona and image by the
proposed Bill.
5. Based upon complaint of the victim, the committee is to conduct an
enquiry and submit its recommendation to the employer (or DM)
who is required to take action. The punishment for
misconduct is as per the service rules of the employer ( if it exists), else
as per the rules of the act. The Act is, however, silent on the situation
where employers service rule contains less stringent punishment
provisions.
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C. Dowry: An Evil
It is the money, goods or estate that a woman brings to a marriage. It is a gift demanded or given as per a precondition for a marriage. Generally, an important part of the power relationship between spouses and their
families relates to dowry and its ramifications.
In 1961, the GoI passed Dowry Prohibition Act, making the dowry demands in wedding arrangements illegal.
There are also sections in IPC that deal with dowry like:
Section 304 B:
Related to dowry deaths.
Stipulates that death of a woman
within 7 years of her marriage by
burns or bodily injury with evidence
of cruelty or harassment by her
husband or his relatives in
connection with a demand for
dowry is dowry death and
punishable with imprisonment for
not less than 7 years.
Section 406:
Related to recovery of Streedhan
(it is what a woman can claim as
her own property within a marital
household. It may include jewellery, gifts, and dowry articles) .
Non bailable and cognizable offence.
Section 498A
For any act of cruelty, imprisonment of Husband or his relative for upto 3 years plus fine.
Non-bailable and Non Compoundable (once a case is lodged, there cant be a compromise).
Despite these provisions, we witness a dowry death every 77 minutes. Women commodification is rampant
in society, and more severe in the high class educated people as is evident from dowry hierarchy shown below.
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Section406 of IPC hardly demarcates boundary between dowry and Streedhan. This has been misused in
demanding dowry.
Law commission in 2012 as well as Justice Malimath Committee 2003 has suggested to amend Sec 498A
since its non-compoundable nature kills chance of reformative justice.
In India we have no provision for protection of a complainant, not even under the Prevention of Dowry
Act. A woman who has complained of harassment goes back to the very people against whom she has
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complained. What security can she possibly feel in such a situation, and how can she continue to act
on her complaint? She obviously continues to be victimised often paying the ultimate price. Many
complainants are faced with eviction from the family home, are cut off without maintenance, and are
unable to follow the complaint precisely because they have no means to do so.
There are rarely any eye witness who are prepared to give evidence against the murderers as the crime
is committed within the four walls of a home and those who are present inside are those who are
committing the crime.
Due to an increasing trend towards consumerism, people see dowry as an avenue to fulfil their
otherwise impossible dreams.
For some people, paying dowry at their daughters marriage is an investment for fetching high dowry
through their sons marriage.
Some others, including women discuss on marriage with high dowry with pride. Generally, marriages
with pomp and show are preferred.
The girls too think that it is their right to take dowry with them when they go to the husbands house.
Another feeling among the mothers-in-law is that when she herself brought dowry from her house at
the time of her marriage, why shouldnt she take dowry for her son.
D. Domestic Violence
Physical violence as well as explicit forms of aggression are used by the more powerful in the household as
methods to ensure obedience of the less powerful and therefore is related to power dynamics in a household.
At every stage in the life cycle, the female body is both the objects of desire and of control. Domestic violence
includes not only inter-spousal violence, but also violence perpetrated by other family members. Domestic
violence includes, harassment, maltreatment, brutality or cruelty and even the threat of assault - intimidation.
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Domestic Violence is a grave concern for Indian Society. Till 2005, remedies available to a victim of domestic
violence in the civil courts on the ground of divorce and in criminal courts (vide sec498A) were limited. Remedies
were linked to matrimonial proceedings, and the relationship outside marriage was not recognized.
Due to such limitations, GoI enacted Domestic Violence Act in 2005 that extends to whole of India. Some of the
features of this act includes:
Beneficiaries
Women in domestic relationship with the respondent
Children also covered. Other can also file complaint on their behalf.
Violence recognized can be physical, sexual, emotional, verbal, psychological, and economic abuse.
Cognisable and Non-bailable offence
According to a survey, illiterate women face more violence than literate women. Relationship between
abusive behaviour and level of education has been found to be statistically significant.
According to survey findings of Visaria (1999) joint family tends to offer women some protection or
acts as a deterrent to husbands using physical force to subdue them.
Some of the reasons given by the women were financial matters, behaviour with in-laws, backbiting, talking to any male without the liking of the husband, asking for money, preventing him from
drinking and husbands personality traits.
One of the main cause why domestic violence prevails and continues is the lack of alternatives among
the victims. Women and children may be economically dependent on abusers. Elderly people and
children may feel too powerless to escape. Language or cultural barriers may isolate victims from
seeking help.
Victims generally feel, it is better to suffer in silence than to be separated from loved ones. They
keep hoping for improvement, but it is normally observed that, without help, violence gets worse
Family members may be unaware of the help that is available from the local agencies. They may also
be unaware of their legal rights.
Conclusion
Every single day single women, young girls, mothers and women from all walks of life are being
assaulted, molested, and violated. The streets, public transport, public spaces in particular have become the
territory of the hunters. While the ones already hunted down weep in silence or in disdain, the rest fight their
way to a basic life with dignity. There is an unspoken war on the streets. Young school and college going girls
use books to shield themselves, other women wear full-covered attire to protect their bodies, and others avoid
the mere glance of the roving gaze.
We don't need to look at statistics to confront the horrid truth. News stories of women from all over India being
raped, beaten, killed are flashed across us day after day and we all are aware of it. The fatal Nirbhaya gang12
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rape saw an outpouring on the streets of Delhi protests decrying the fragile status of women in India.
Candle light marches, editorials examining the patriarchal and sexist traditions of our country, an awakening on
social media even conversations on streets revolve around the night they cannot forget: the night that took
Nirbhaya.
This is the time we own up to ourselves. We stand by each other. Tall and proud. Brave and unfazed. This is the
time we own up to India. No more Harassment. We want what we deserve - for us and for our daughters a
safer India for women.
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