LAWS RELATING TO WOMEN- A VANISHING POINT OF JURISPRUDENCE

INTRODUCTION.
The status of women in India has been subject to many great changes over the past few millennia. From equal status with men in ancient times through the low points of the medieval period, to the promotion of equal rights by many reformers, the history of women in India has been eventful. In modern India, women have adorned high offices in India including that of the President, Prime minister, Speaker of the Lok Sabha

Women in India now participate in all activities such as education,sports, politics, media, art and culture, service sectors, science and technology, etc Indira Gandhi, who served as Prime Minister of India for an aggregate period of fifteen years is the world's longest serving woman Prime Minister. IMPORTANT CONSTITUTIONAL AND LEGAL PROVISIONS FOR WOMEN IN INDIA

The government of India has been strengthening various laws focused on women and children. This has been more visible since the Beijing CEDAW Conference.

Vanishing point of jurisprudence. The recent years have been witness to some landmark interpretations and directives related to Violence against Women. Despite the constitutional mandate of equal legal status for men and women, the same is yet to be realized. The dejure laws have not been translated into defacto situation for various reasons such as illiteracy, social practices, prejudices, cultural norms based on patriarchal values, poor representation of women in policy-making, poverty, regional disparity in development, lack of access and opportunity to information and resources, etc. The ground situation more or less remains the same. .. The awareness on laws and access to justice remains dismal. At the district and the state level sensitivity on women rights among judicial officers, administration and the police is very low. This leads to a situation where the implementation of the law becomes difficult. Recently India has increased its budgetary support for the implementation of various laws on violence against women and it becomes increasingly more important for the organization like Shakti Vahini to work on governance specially related to women and children issuesThe National Legal Research Desk (NLRD) has been instituted to strengthen the implementation of the laws related to Women and Children in India. NLRD focuses on documenting the recent changes in the law, collect and compile the Recent Landmark Judgments of the Supreme Courts of India & the High Courts and ensure wide scale dissemination of the same through the government and the non government machinery. The NLRD will work with Law Enforcement Agencies, Police Academies, Judicial Agencies, Government Agencies, Statutory Agencies, NGOs, Civil Society and Mass Media promoting

Social Indicator

India

World

The principle of gender equality is enshrined

in the Indian Constitution in its Preamble, Fundamental Rights, Fundamental Duties and Directive Principles. The Constitution not only grants equality to women, but also empowers the State to adopt measures of positive discrimination in favour of women. Within the framework of a democratic polity, our laws, development policies, Plans and programmes have aimed at womens advancement in different spheres. India has also ratified various international conventions and human rights instruments committing to secure equal rights of women. Key among them is the ratification of the Convention on Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) in 1993.

The Constitution of India guarantees to all Indian women equality (Article 14), no discrimination by the State (Article 15(1)), equality of opportunity (Article 16), equal pay for equal work (Article 39(d)). of women and children (Article 15(3)), renounces acticesderogatory to the dignity of women (Article 51(A) (e)), and also allows for provisions to be made by the State for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief. (Article 42). The feminist activism in India picked up momentum during later 1970s. One of the first national level issues that brought the women's groups together was the Mathura rape case. The acquittal of policemen accused of raping a young girl Mathura in a police station, led to a wide-scale protests in 19791980. The protests were widely covered in the national media, and forced the Government to amend the Evidence Act, the Criminal Procedure Code and the Indian Penal Code and introduce the category of custodial rape. Female activists united over issues such as female infanticide, gender bias, women health, and female literacy.
Since alcoholism is often associated with violence against women in India, many women groups launched anti-liquor campaigns in Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and other states. Many Indian Muslim women have questioned the fundamental leaders' interpretation of women's rights under the Shariat law and have criticized the triple talaq system.

Infant Mortality Rate, per 1000 live births Maternal Mortality Rate, per 100,000 live births Female Literacy, % Female School Enrollment Earned Income by females, % Underweight Children, % Total Fertility Rate Women in Government, % Contraception usage, % Low birth weight babies, %

73 570 58 47 26 53 3.2 6 44 33

60 430 77.6 62 58 30 2.9 7 56 17

In 1990s, grants from foreign donor agencies enabled the formation of new womenoriented NGOs. Self-help groups and NGOs such as Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA) have played a major role in women's rights in India. Many women have emerged as leaders of local movements. For example, Medha Patkar of the Narmada Bachao Andolan.

The Government of India declared 2001 as the Year of Women's Empowerment (Swashakti). The National Policy For The Empowerment Of Women came was passed in 2001. In 2006, the case of a Muslim rape victim called Imrana was highlighted in the media. Imrana was raped by her father-in-law. The pronouncement of some Muslim clerics that Imrana should marry her father-in-law led to widespread protests and finally Imrana's father-in-law was given a prison term of 10 years, The verdict was welcomed by many women's groups and the All India Muslim Personal Law Board. In 2010 March 9, one day after International Women's day, Rajyasabha passed Women's Reservation Bill, ensuring 33% reservation to women in Parliament and state legislative bodies.
The statistics testifies to the brutalities afflicted on women folk Though there are problems in the lives of Indian women but they are always ready to fight all the odds and enjoy their life to the full they have their own talent, hobbies, and they socialize according to Indian customs.

th

Ralph Waldo Emerson, Writer Let us treat men and women well; treat them as if they were real. Perhaps they are.

Margaret Thatcher, British Politician

g said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.

Margaret Thatcher, British Politician In politics if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.v

LAWS RELATING TO WOMEN.

Following the clear enunciation of the states approach to womens issues, the Indian legislatures have passed various laws from time to time to protect and promote the cause of women and to remove their liabilities. Of course, many such laws were enacted in the earlier decades as part of the Governments efforts as social reform on labour welfare. But the post Independence era saw several of these laws being amended in response to the egalitarian urges of the new Constitution. Important laws passed by the Indian legislatures which have a bearing on womens lives and status some have been listed hereunder. Important Social Legislations Relating to Women (1) The Indian Divorce Act (4 of 1869) (2) The married Womens property Act, 1874 (3 of 1874) (3) The Guardian and Wards Act, 1890 (8 of 1890) (5) The child marriage restraint Act, 1929 (19 0f 1929) (4) The Indian Succession Act, 1925 (39 of 1925) (6) The Hindu marriage Act, 1955 (25 of 1955) (7) The immoral Traffic (prevention) Act, 1956 (7) The maternity benefit Act, 1961 (53 of 1961) (8) The Dowry prohibition Act, 1961 (28 of 1961) (8) The pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques ( Regulations and prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994 (9) The medical termination of pregnancy Act,1971(34 of 1971) (10) National Commission for Women Act, (20 of 1990) The pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques(Regulation and prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994 The Act restricts the use of pre-natal diagnostic techniques for the purpose of detecting genetic or metabolic disorders, Chromosomal abnormalities, congenital malformations of sex linked disorders. It prohibits the use of these techniques for determining the sex of the foetus leading to female foeticide. The techniques are to be used only under certain conditions and only by registered institutions. There is an absolute prohibition on communicating the sex of the foetus to the women or her relatives. Any contravention of these provisions can result in conviction and punishment. Every offence under the act is cognizable, non- bailable and noncompoundable.

The child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 The Act, duly amended in 1938, 1951, 1968 and 1978, applies to all persons in India irrespective of their caste, community and religion. The Act prescribes punishments for an adult male contracting a child marriage, anyone who performs, conducts or directs the child marriage and a male parent\ Guardian who promotes, permits or solemnizes a child marriage. Offences under the Act are cognizable for certain purposes. Although the Act prohibits and prescribes punishment for child marriage.

The Hindu Succession Act, 1956 The Act seeks to amend and codify the law relating to intestate succession for Hindus. It simplifies the law by abolishing the different systems prevailing under the Mitakshara and Dayabhaga schools. It also extends to persons in south India who were governed by the Marumakkatyan law. The act introduces some radical and fundamental changes, the most significant being that it grants equal rights of succession to male and female heirs in the same category, e.g. brother and sister, son and daughter. It recognises the right of a woman to inherit equally with men. It also abolishes the right to life or limited estate of female heirs with the result that the class I heirs of a man succeed to the estate of the deceased simultaneously, taking the property in equal shares and as absolute owners. The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act,1956 The Act prescribes punishments for keeping a brothel, for living on the earnings of a prostitute, for trafficking in women for prostitution, etc. It also aims at prohibiting prostitution in public places with a view to safeguarding public morals and society. It prescribes stringent action against commission of offences against a child or a minor. Every offence punishable under the Act is cognizable and the Special Police Officer is empowered to arrest the offender without warrant .The Special Police Officer has the power to enter premises and, if directed by the court, even to search the premises and to rescue persons from such premises. Such rescued persons are to be taken in custody and medically examined. The Maternity Benefit Act,1961 The object of the Act is to impart social justice to women workers. It protects the dignity of motherhood by providing for full and healthy maintenance of the women worker and her child during the period of her confinement. The act provides for payment of maternity benefits in cash for a certain period before and after confinement. It further provides for grant of leave and other medical facilities. The Act entitles the woman worker to nursing breaks until her child attains the age of 15 months. It prescribes the period during which the employer is prohibited from giving to a pregnant woman employee any arduous work, or work which involves long hours of standing, or work which in any way is likely to interfere with her pregnancy or the normal development of the foetus, or is likely to cause miscarriage, or otherwise adversely affect her health.

The Medical Termination of pregnancy Act, 1971 The Act aims at protecting the physical and mental health of a pregnant woman. Consisting of just eight sections, it deals with various aspects like the time, place and circumstances under which a pregnancy may be terminated by a registered medical practitioner. It legalises abortion in cases where the pregnancy will adversely affect the physical and mentalwellbeing of the prospective mother. The Act mandates that in every case of medical termination of pregnancy, consent of the pregnant woman must be taken unless she is a minor or a lunatic, when her guardians consent would suffice. Dowry prohibition Act, 1961 The Dowry prohibition Act has been amended from time to time, but this piece of social legislation, Sec 6 of the Act clearly mentions about return of Dowry.

1993. CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS

1.

The Constitution of India not only grants equality to women but also empowers the State to adopt measures of positive discrimination in favour of women for neutralizing the cumulative socio economic, education and political disadvantages faced by them. Fundamental Rights, among others, ensure equality before the law and equal protection of law; prohibits discrimination against any citizen on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, and

guarantee equality of opportunity to all citizens in matters relating to employment. Articles 14, 15, 15(3), 16, 39(a), 39(b), 39(c) and 42 of the Constitution are of specific importance in this regard.

Constitutional Privileges

(i)

Equality before law for women (Article 14)

The State not to discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of

(ii)

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religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them (Article 15 (i))

(iii)

The State to make any special provision in favour of women and children (Article 15 (3))

(iv) Equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appointment to any office under the State (Article 16)

The State to direct its policy towards securing for men and women equally the right to an adequate means of livelihood (Article 39(a) ); and equal pay for equal work for both men and women (Article 39(d))

(v)

To promote justice, on a basis of equal opportunity and to provide free legal aid by suitable legislation or scheme or in any other way to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities (Article 39 A)

(vi)

(vii)

The State to make provision for securing just and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief (Article 42)

(viii) The State to promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people and to protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation (Article 46)

(ix)

The State to raise the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people (Article 47)

(x)

To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst

15

all the people of India and to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women (Article 51(A) (e))

(xi)

Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in every Panchayat to be reserved for women and such seats to be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a Panchayat (Article 243 D(3) )

(xii)

Not less than one- third of the total number of offices of Chairpersons in the Panchayats at each level to be reserved for women (Article 243 D (4))

Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes)

of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in every Municipality to be reserved for women and such seats to be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a Municipality (Article 243 T (3))

(ix)

Reservation of offices of Chairpersons in Municipalities for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and women in such manner as the legislature of a State may by law provide (Article 243 T (4))

(x)

LEGAL PROVISIONS

2.

To uphold the Constitutional mandate, the State has enacted various legislative measures intended to ensure equal rights, to counter social discrimination and various forms of violence and atrocities and to provide support services especially to working women.

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Although women may be victims of any of the crimes such as 'Murder', 'Robbery', 'Cheating' etc, the crimes, which are directed specifically against women, are characterized as 'Crime against Women'.

These are broadly classified under two categories.

The Crimes Identified Under the Indian Penal Code (IPC)

(1)

(i)

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

(v)

(vi)

(vii)

Rape (Sec. 376 IPC)

Kidnapping & Abduction for different purposes ( Sec. 363-373)

Homicide for Dowry, Dowry Deaths or their attempts (Sec. 302/ 304-B IPC)

Torture, both mental and physical (Sec. 498-A IPC)

Molestation (Sec. 354 IPC)

Sexual Harassment (Sec. 509 IPC)

Importation of girls (up to 21 years of age)

The Crimes identified under the Special Laws (SLL)

(2)

Although all laws are not gender specific, the provisions of law affecting women significantly have been reviewed periodically and amendments carried out to keep pace with the emerging requirements. Some acts which have special provisions to safeguard women and their interests are:

(i)

(ii)

(iii)

(iv)

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The Employees State Insurance Act, 1948

The Plantation Labour Act, 1951

The Family Courts Act, 1954

The Special Marriage Act, 1954

The Hindu Marriage Act, 1955

(v)

The Hindu Succession Act, 1956 with amendment in 2005

(vi)

Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956

(vii)

d her child during the period of her confinement. The Act provides for payment of maternity benefits in cash for a certain period before and after confinement .It further provides for grant of leave and other medical facilities .The Act entitles the woman worker to nursing breaks until her child attains the age of 15 months. It prescribes the period during which the employer is prohibited from giving to a pregnant woman employee and arduous work ,or work which involves long hours of standing, or work which in any way is likely to interfere with her pregnancy or the normal development of the foetus, or is likely to cause miscarriage,or otherwise adversely affect her health.

The Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act,1