(This article was first published on 26 January 2017 and has been reposted from The Quint’s archives on the occasion on India’s 69th Republic Day)
Today, we celebrate our Indianness; our good fortune of being the citizens of this glorious country that promises all of us – irrespective of caste, creed or religion – certain fundamental rights that are enshrined in the Constitution.
But is all really equal? As women of this country, there are some rights that, even though we are born with, have never been accorded to us in actuality. We have long been suppressed, but now it’s time to reclaim our rights.
Right to Equality
They say we have the Right to Equality. We are equal in the eyes of law irrespective of the gender we are born in. But we have many laws that are horribly biased against us.
The Parsi law of inheritance prohibits the children of Parsi women married to non-Parsi men from inheriting property. Even though Hindu women are guaranteed the right to property, they often have to willingly forego their claim to it, in the interest of maintaining good relations with their family. If they try to fight for it, they are labelled home breakers and vilified for it.
The law-mandated legal age for women to get married (18), which is lower than the legal age for men to get married (21), also signifies a patriarchal mindset.
Gender equality before the law is definitely guaranteed to us by our Constitution, but sexist laws are proof that we are far, far away from the utopia of actual equality between men and women.
India ranks 127th on the gender inequality index and 108th on the global gender gap index. In fact many women, especially those belonging to the margins of society face what is called ‘persistent inequality’.
Right to Freedom
Freedom, to an Indian woman, comes with multiple caveats.
Even though we are all guaranteed the freedom of movement, our movement is governed by the time on the clock, and the socio-cultural fabric of a place.
We are asked not to step out in the night. We are asked to be responsible for our safety. We are asked to watch what we wear. As Indian women, our freedom and other rights are horribly trampled upon, irrespective of Constitutional guarantees.
Right Against Exploitation
Many Indian women from different parts of India are robbed of their rights, and are trafficked to other countries.
Sourced from financially challenged areas like Madurai and Tiruchirapalli in Tamil Nadu, Gaya, Kishanganj, Katihar in Bihar, Murshidabad and 24 Parganas in West Bengal, and Dholpur, Alwar, and Tonk from Rajasthan, these women are forced to work as sex workers and subjected to severe exploitation and abuse.
That is gross violation of their fundamental rights, but guess what, the women trafficking business is still thriving even in 2018.
Right to Freedom of Religion
While every Indian is free to practice their religion, the last thing we should do is to divide ourselves into little silos and be oblivious to the oppressive, sexist religious practices that are bothering our sisters.
Whether it’s Triple Talaq among Muslim women, or Female Genital Mutilation among the Dawoodi Bohra community, or a religious board disallowing women from entering religious institutions as in the case of Sabarimala and Haji Ali Dargah, we must all collectively fight back.
Most importantly, as women, we must never take our rights for granted, and keep fighting for them till the day we achieve actual equality.
Happy Republic Day.
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