International Women’s Day: Are women really safe in India?

GUWAHATI: Our economy is booming, as shown by our GDP figures. Despite this, India, the world's largest democracy, fails to provide its people with basic fundamental rights. Most notably, we have failed to protect our women's right to work without being exploited. By the minute, we're failing them. Possibly the second.

 

On the eve of International Women’s Day, know how happy the celebrations of Women’s Day in the country, and what are the reasons for not being happy celebrating the day.

 

Crimes against women in India:

 

Most recently a woman was burnt to death by her husband in the Guwahati city of Assam as she failed to meet his dowry requirements.

 

In Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow a man unhappy with his daughter’s relationship with a man beheaded her.

In 2019 a veterinary doctor in Hyderabad was raped and then burnt by the accused.

 

Another video has gone viral on social media where a young woman can be heard announcing her decision to commit suicide and committed suicide soon afterward jumping into the Sabarmati River in Ahemdabad.

 

CJIs’ recent ‘marry the victim’ remark to rape accused has sparked another controversy.

These prejudicial attitudes are seen right from womb to tomb.

 

They start with the practice of sex-selective abortion and infanticide, and continue through adolescent and adult life with high levels of female infant mortality, child marriage, teenage pregnancy, lesser wages for women, unsafe workplaces, domestic violence, maternal mortality, sexual assault and neglect of elderly women.

 

ALSO READ: Guwahati woman, a mother of two, set ablaze by husband demanding ‘dowry’

 

Domestic violence: Domestic violence results when one partner in an intimate relationship, such as dating, marriage, cohabitation, or a family relationship, abuses the other.

It can take the form of physical, mental, verbal, financial, or sexual violence, and it can be subtle, coercive, or violent.

 

Female infanticide and sex-selective abortion, dowry deaths, honor killings, Witchcraft etc: Female infanticide is the elected killing of a newborn female child or the termination of a female fetus through sex-selective abortion.

 

A dowry death is the murder or suicide of a married woman caused by a dispute over her dowry.

In some cases, husbands and in-laws will attempt to extort a greater dowry through continuous harassment and torture which sometimes results in the wife committing suicide.

 

An honor killing is a murder of a family member who has been considered to have brought dishonour and shame upon the family. Examples of reasons for honor killings include the refusal to enter an arranged marriage, committing adultery, choosing a partner that the family disapproves of, and becoming a victim of rape.

 

Witchcraft is the practice of what the practitioner believes to be magical skills and abilities, and activities such as spells, incantations, and magical rituals.

Murders of women accused of witchcraft still occur in India.

 

Sexual Abuse, Molestation, and Rape: Rape is one of the most common crimes in India.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau, one woman is raped every 20 minutes in India.

Forced marriage: Girls are vulnerable to being forced into marriage at young ages, suffering from a double vulnerability. Child brides often do not understand the meaning and responsibilities of marriage.

 

Harassment, trafficking, and forced prostitution, online abuse, harassment at the workplace: Human trafficking, especially of girls and women, often leads to forced prostitution and sexual slavery. Women are regularly subject to online rape threats, online harassment, cyber-stalking, blackmail, trolling, slut-shaming, and more.

 

Sexual harassment at workplace, mostly comprising of indecent remarks, unwanted touches, demands for sex, and the dissemination of pornography.

 

According to the latest report of the National Crime Record Bureau crime against women increased 7.3 per cent from 2018 to 2019.

 

Majority of cases under crime against women under IPC were registered under ‘cruelty by husband or his relatives’ (30.9%), followed by ‘assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty’ (21.8%), ‘kidnapping & abduction of women’ (17.9%) and ‘rape’ (7.9%).

 

ALSO READ: Rajasthan Policeman Rapes Woman Who Had Gone To File Case Against Her Husband

 

Moreover, there are also various special laws relating to women for their protection:

 

• Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005

• Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961

• Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986

• Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013

• Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006

 

The Government has also taken a number of initiatives for the safety of women and girls.