Atrocities Against Women in

Indian Society
Of all forms of discrimination in society, gender-based
discrimination is the most intriguing. This is because this
discrimination is not on the basis of racial origin or economic status
or ethnic identity; this discrimination is based on social construction
of biological differences. A consequence of any form of
discrimination is violence. Violence against women is very much
rampant in our society.

Why does violence/ atrocities against women occur?

A naive student may state that women are biologically weaker and men are
strong. This is a reason why violence against women is easy, but not a
reason for violence per se. Violence against women is a product of social
values, social status of women and legal protection that women get.
It is said that maturity of a civilization is known from the respect women get
in that civilization.

Talking of the Indian society, the status of women here is not something we
can boast about. Various forms of violence on women in India are:

1. Child prostitution
2. Human trafficking
3. Violation of modesty and rape
4. Dowry deaths
5. Domestic violence
6. NRI husbands’ atrocities
7. Violence during political protests
8. Violence during riots and communal violence
9. Atrocities on Dalit women
10. Atrocities on widows

Now, let us look into the psycho-social and structural causal factors
in prevalence of violence against women:

Social values

 Historians assert that women had status and rights equivalent to men in
ancient Indian society. They played an active role in public life. However,
over a period of time, a heavy value-bias against women developed. A notion
 of female inferiority was introduced in social values. This debasing of
women’s status further complicated during Muslim rule.
 Owing to this, the social cost of inflicting violence on women became low.
Men inflicting violence on women were not stigmatized; rather women
justified the violence on themselves as men’s right. This happens when
women internalize the social values and start believing that they really are
inferior. Men, on the other hand, are appreciated for “reigning in” on their
wives and daughters.

Patriarchy

 A patriarchal family system is one where ultimate authority rests with the
patriarch, the oldest male member. There is a clear division of labour
between male and female members. While men go out to work (and have a
right over economic resources and property), women’s work is limited to the
household. Women do not have any source of income. Hence, women are
economically dependent on male members of the family. This reduces their
bargaining power.
 A major reason for domestic violence is patriarchy. Neither do women have
bargaining power, nor can they leave the household. They have to tolerate
all kinds of torture and violence meted out on them.

Contradictions of change

 The process of social change happens in all societies. But, social change in
India in the form of modernization is fast and uneven. As a result, while
social values of some sections are modern and progressive, social values of
other sections of the same society are conservative. This leads to many
forms of violence on women.
 Take the case of moral policing. Recently, some women attending a pub in
Mangalore were beaten up by fundamentalist right wing members. While the
victims were progressive and independent, and asserted themselves by
having liquor at par with men (if men can have it, why cannot women? If
men enjoy it, why not women?), but the assailants were conservative
elements, who saw their act as a threat to Indian culture and tradition. In
traditional India, women are ‘puppets’; there are numerous restrictions on
women, and double standards in dealing with what women can do vis-a-vis
men.
 Another contradiction of change is the rise in aspirations. The advent of open
markets and capitalism has shown big dreams to people. To attain these
dreams, they can engage in any kind of activity. For example, there is a mad
rush among girls (and parents) in Punjab and nearby places for marrying NRI
grooms. They do it hoping to get easy access to American shores and better
quality of life. Alas, NRI husbands have their own plans. While they marry in
India, they also have other affairs/relationships overseas. Often they desert
 their wives after a few days of marriage. When the wife is taken along to
overseas places, many times she is resorted to brutal domestic violence. In
foreign places, she has no one to complain to. If she is taken there illegally,
she cannot even report to the police and take redressal with law of the
country of destination. The movie “Provoked”, starring Aishwarya Rai was
based on this issue. Anu Peshawariya, author of ‘Immigrant Dreams’,
believes that this trend of NRI marriages is because of rising aspirations for
better lifestyle.
 Dowry deaths are also a result of contradictions of change. Traditionally,
dowry is meant to be a gift. Marriage is a relationship between two families
and it was not seen from an economic angle. But, as social values changed,
people developed a more consumerist attitude. Aspirations for better
economic status induced grooms to demand dowry. Dowry became a means
to an end: better economic condition, and hence, better status in society.
 Interesting to note in above cases is that as rapid social change takes place,
social values change. But, ethics and morality cannot catch up. Hence,
richness became a measurement of achievement. But, the means of
becoming rich are not defined in social values. So, people resort to unethical
and immoral acts for the same.

Role of Mass Media

 A section of feminists and psychologists are of the opinion that violence

against women stem from the promotion of consumerist lifestyles through
mass media. Advertisements and movies present women as beautiful
models, objects to be desired. This traps women in stereotypes. In Hindi
movies, most actresses get to only sing and dance. Their role is typified by
their looks, their “size zero” figure and their dancing skills. These
stereotypes create the image of women as objects of consumerism. Such
image lowers the status of women (they are seen not as personalities, but as
objects with sexy figures). Attempts to rape and molest women may be
influenced by these. It is tough for a man to violate the modesty of a woman
 whom he looks as a person; this happens only when he looks at the woman
as an object.
 Pornography has found an increased supply in recent times due co
information revolution. Porns create ‘rape myths’, that women enjoy hard
sex and that only bad girls get raped. Porn movies further increase a man’s
desire for sexual gratification. Exposure to porn at a young age creates
further desensitization towards women.

Law of the Land

 The clarity or ambiguity in legal doctrines regarding violence and atrocities

against women is an important factor in the prevalence of violence on
women. Neera Desai observes that there is a basic contradiction relating to
 women in the Indian Constitution. While women are referred to as equal
citizens in Article 15, the right to freedom of religion (embodied in Article 25-
28) provides for personal laws, which deny equality to women in several
facets of life. For example, Muslim personal law dictates that a man can
dispose off his wife by saying ‘talaq ‘ three times to her.
 Indian laws are more progressive and more rational than that of many other
third world countries. Yet, feminist scholars have pointed to many anomalies
in our legal system. Some interesting instances are:

Definition of rape does not extend to marital rape.

 Questions have been raised on the efficacy of ‘male’ judges in trying cases of
violence against women. The famous Mathura Rape Case, wherein a 14 year
old girl was raped in custody is an instance. The Supreme Court called it rape
by consent. Feminist scholars argue that law implementation and law
interpretation are in the hands of men who have no understanding of what a
sexual assault means to women.
 Inability and unwillingness of state machinery to take initiative to collect
evidence is another issue raised by scholars. In the first 21 years of Dowry
Prohibition Act 1961, only one conviction had taken place. I had once read a
report about a village-level Dalit woman worker, who had tried to prevent
child marriage in her village as part of her duty. A few men of an upper caste
family raped her due to her interference. A case was filed. The district court
acquitted the rapist on the ground that upper caste men would not even
touch, let alone rape, a Dalit Woman!

Political Violence

 If you look closely at communalism, ethnic conflicts, caste conflicts and

fundamentalism, you will know that whatever be the reason for same, the
victims are mostly women and children. In the aftermath of Gujarat riots, a
shocking case that came to the fore was that of Bilkis Bano. She was a
pregnant woman whose family members were killed; she was raped in her
condition. Such acts forced me to think, if our civilization is really civilized!
 Caste conflicts are other phenomena that have women suffering even
though they are not a part of the conflict. Whenever upwardly mobile
backward classes/castes become more assertive, a conflict arises between
upper castes and lower castes. Stripping, rape and other forms of humiliation
are inflicted on Dalit women during caste wars.
 Political violence against women also takes place during political protests.
Both men and women are engaged in such protests, but case of violence is
especially severe on women. Around a year back, a tribal women who was
protesting for reservation in Assam was stripped; she was stark naked in
front of the public and the media. Many cases of violation against women
engaged in political struggle have come from the North-East and Jammu and
Kashmir.

Like other social issues, the issue of gender inequality crops from
factors within the society. As long as these basic anomalies in
society and social norms are not changed, it will be extremely
difficult to better the lot of women. Further, violent behaviour
directed against women is a result of such anomalies in social
institutions and social norms