I was singularly unlucky this year for not participating, and speaking on the theme for this year’s international day for women. This write-up is only a compensatory intervention to make up for the loss one suffers in not being able to listen to differing viewpoints.
The March 8th is celebrated in all parts of globe and events; seminars and meetings are held, and problems faced by womenfolk are discussed, and agenda-setting is done for groups and states. The good thing about these celebrations is that men take an equal interest in these functions and more often than not even decide about the sub-themes to be discussed.
It is significant to revisit the year 1908, when 15000 women garment workers marched through the New York city protesting against sexual harassment, low wages, and long hours of work.
This in one sense marked the rise of “phenomenal women”. In India notably the history of struggle for rights and dignity of women is very much a part of freedom movement whose legacy got transmitted into the nation-building process after 1947.
Conceptual Framework
The patriarchy and gender bias are inherent to the idea of nation and state-formation and confirmed by a kind of politics favoring exclusion of margins. Urvashi Butalia in her book “The other side of silence”, writes that 75000 women were raped during the partition of 1947.
The women were abducted and killed. In 1989 eminent political scientist Ashish Nandy warned about “Indian state moving from service to domination”. Nation-building, so to say, in India is an incomplete project and people and groups at margins are fighting million battles for a share in power and resources.
The contemporary state is increasingly turning exclusivist in politics and policies, and resultantly huge chaos, violence and instability in the polity.
Wrong Notions
There are wrong notions about Muslim rule in India and how some rulers allegedly, due to their obscurantist views, kept women outside the institution of power and state. This is factually incorrect and truth lies in the nature of state and society at a given point of time. The women of all communities were at the margins and when the anti-colonial movement began the women irrespective of caste and community started playing their role in different spheres.
True, due to feudal nature of society and economy the cake for native population was limited and confined to higher echelons of social strata. According to one account, 225 Muslim women got martyred in the first war of independence in 1857.
Begum Hazrat Mahal, the illustrious wife of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah , and Begum Abida Bano (mother of Ali brothers) along with the wife of poet Maulana Hasrat Mohani fought for India’s freedom, and worked in close cooperation with M K Gandhi in the Khalafat and Non-cooperation movements. Mrs Savitribai Phule, the wife of Jyotra Phule, became the first female teacher and notably Capt Laxmi Sehgal, a doctor, built the first all Muslim regiment of Netaji’s Indian National Army.
Post-Colonial Journey
In India, after 1947 half of the battle for women uplift was won by men through decisions taken in the constituent assembly of India. (During my student days we were told that assembly had only founding fathers). All Indians irrespective of gender and caste were given equal voting rights. The project of a socialist and welfare state in India led to many women- friendly laws and policies to remove the road blocks in advancement of women. After 1980 visibility, voice and vision of the women have widened.
The Supreme Court of India opened ten command positions to women in army and quite recently three women too were appointed to the Supreme Court as judges. Thus the learned male judges (Justice Chandrachud and Justice Rastogi), in a liberating tune quoted progressive poet Abrar-ul-Haq Majaz who exhorted women to fight:Terre mathe pe ye anchal toe buhat hi khub hai lekinTu iss anchal se ik parcham bana leti tou acha tha”While the raiment covering your head is good,It would be better if you made a banner of it.In 1948 Miss CB Muthamma was the first woman to join the Indian foreign service.
Three years later Miss Anne George was the first to join Indian Administrative Service (IAS). Both were to sign undertakings that they would quit if they chose to marry but no such conditions were imposed on male officers. After some time C B Muthamma was promoted as Ambassador. She challenged it in the Supreme Court of India. The court in a landmark judgment said “whether Art 14 and 16 belong to myth or reality”. The last line of the judgment was quite revealing: “we dismiss the petition but not the problem”.
This sounds encouraging but the fact remains that the state in India is an “ incomplete project”. In Assam Jabeda Khatun’s claim to be an Indian citizen was rejected by Foreigners Tribunal and Guwati High court rejected her 2019 appeal though she presented fifteen documents in her defense. In 2019 the then Governor of Jammu and Kashmir state Mr. Satyapal Malik revoked the waiver of stamp duty to properties registered in the name of women.
The law was made when Mehbooba Mufti was the Chief Minister. According to government data asset-ownership in J&K is largely dominated by men. In the case of land ownership only 23 percent women hold property in their name while the figure for men is 73 percent. The revocation of stamp duty was not a mere arbitrary act of the state but a terrible onslaught on a composite legacy bequeathed by “New Kashmir manifesto 1944”, which had shaped the political culture of Kashmir and made it gender-sensitive by granting rights and dignity to women in an exceptional manner. In a broader framework we advance three recommendations for making women co-partner in the overall development of the country.
Way Forward
First, we need to address seriously the gender dimension of inequality. The Oxfam reports have consistently highlighted this issue. Globally men own 50 percent more wealth than women and also dominate positions of economic and political power. There is a link between economic and gender inequality. Of the 60 million domestic workers world over 80 percent are women and just 10 percent are covered under labour laws.Second, the political representation of women needs to be increased by all means. Globally, only 18 percent of ministers and 24 percent of parliamentarians are women.
Political parties with an agenda for women empowerment are definitely going to be benefitted by this reach out. Earlier women voters had an unprecedented say in shaping landslide victory of Aam Adami party in Delhi. The women participation in peace process makes peace agreements stronger, societies resilient, and economies sustainable. The women from among the minority communities, particularly Muslims, need to be give space and state support.
This can make a huge difference to the socio-economic profile of the community and country. An excellent example of women in the service of women is how women started an English school for women in Aligarh during freedom movement supported by eminent women like Shaifa Tyabji, Lady Abdullah Suhrawardy and Alia Fyzee.Lastly, leadership at all levels, women self help groups, and women’s movements need to do proper mapping of emerging areas where jobs can emerge and accordingly set their agenda.
The gig, platform and care economy are future fields for women. The gig and platform economies offer flexibility and freelancing jobs and according to ILO Global Survey (2021) working from home and job flexibility are essential for women. Access to education, adoption of new skill-sets and digital technology are three enablers for women to get economically independent, politically equal, and socially confident.All this and much more is possible if men and women without perceiving “empowerment project” a turf war work towards a destination of equity, dignity and integrity of the society.
The slogan adopted by some women’s groups “Ghar Ka Kaam, Sab Ka Kaam” makes eminent sense. Justice Ayesha Malik recently elevated as judge of Supreme Court of Pakistan has never missed any parent-teacher meeting in schools. The managers of nation-state project need to appreciate that women of all classes and communities have huge aspiration to see their daughters educated. The increasing violence in society seems to be a barrier in advancement of women and their progress.
Prof Gull Wani teaches Political Science at Kashmir University
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.
The facts, analysis, assumptions and perspective appearing in the article do not reflect the views of GK.