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Women Empowerment in India: A Way Ahead

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WOMEN’S RIGHTS
Issues and Implications
WOMEN’S RIGHTS
Issues and Implications

Editors

Dr. Sumant Kumar

Dr. Ranjeeta Muhkerjee

SSDN Publishers & Distributors

New Delhi
Published by
SSDN PUBLISHERS & DISTRIBUTORS
5A, Sahni Mansion, Ansari Road
Daryaganj, New Delhi 110002 (India)
Ph: 011- 47520102, 9871115366
E-mail: ssdn.katla@gmail.com
www.ssdnbooks.com

Women’s Rights: Issues and Implications

 Editors

[All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, mechanical or photocopying,
recording and otherwise, without prior written permission of the editors and the
publisher.]

First edition: 2017

ISBN No. 978-93-8357- 544-2

PRINTED IN INDIA

Printed at: New Delhi

 Preface

Human civilization is gradually progressing and transforming through

all apprehensions, dissentions and synchronization. Since the dawn of civilization,
women have been a catalyst of change in different times and ascend in the
sphere of knowledge and civilization, shoulder to shoulder with men. In a male
dominated society, women have stood up in their inexorable crusade against all
humiliation, oppression and torture to establish their position, power and
inimitability. All the way through centuries and across time, the role of Indian
Women has remained embedded into eternity. In spite of her contribution in the
life of every individual human being, she still belongs to a class or group of
society which is in an underprivileged position on account of several social
barriers and impediments. The inferior status of women is entrenched in history,
culture and tradition. Across centuries and across time, the role of Indian Women
has remained ingrained into eternity. At one level the role of Indian women
remains frozen in time and at other. There is a rich and diverse genealogies of
women movements in India which are marked by unrelenting and long-drawn-
out struggles. Though in one side, notwithstanding the history one will get
flabbergasted on discerning the decimation of decades of struggle, yet another
aspect, women from different and distinct social location and strata of the society
have together and severally surged out of their respective radical spaces and
brought transformation in the constitutional commonsense.
vi Women’s Rights: Issues and Implications

The waves of concern out of women being subjected to discrimination

in all stages of life, in social, political, economic, cultural that affect education,
health and participation in society and are particularly vulnerable to specific
violations such as Gender-based Violence, Trafficking, Sex discrimination, lack
of self determination in her Reproductive Rights, there is a long list to go only to
mention a few. Lately, throughout the world in general and India in particular, a
good deal of attentions has been given on the question of human rights of women
in one side and women liberation and women empowerment on the other. Human
rights are not the domain of any individual or class rather the entire mankind is
enveloped by the concept of human rights.
Human rights are not a domain of man alone, they cover the entire
Mankind, constitution and the laws also make provisions for the protection of
rights equally to both men and women, but gender equality is still a far cry for
the women in our patriarchal society which is characterized by exclusive male
dominance by way of male control of female sexuality, fertility, mobility and
efficiency. The women faces non acceptance in such a system and is subjected
to discrimination, control, exploitation, oppression and violence within family
and outside. Thus the greatest hurdle for the overall development of a woman
is gender discrimination, she is been taxed for being a female throughout her
life and often been denied equal rights. In this book based on the theme, “women
and rights”, the concern in this work looks women’s role in family and society
including it compare to the prevailing laws and policies of the government. Are
governments policies, schemes are on the page only or benefitting to the women
arena? Where, in fact, their lives have been touched by law and policies, the
quality of such rendezvous, are of critical significance. Dr. Sumant in the first
chapter bearing the tile “Women Empowerment in India: A Way Ahead” draws
the discussion on the challenges of empowerment of women in India and
endeavor has been made to find out the gap between different programmes
and policies and their implementation in the arena of empowerment of women.
He argues that, there are many barriers to the way of women empowerment
because of their low social status in the society and limited role in political
participation and development of any state is not possible without the
development of the women. The second chapter Dr. Ranjeeta analyses the
violence against women within the private realm by the near and dear ones and
how life is a constant fight for girl. Here critical analysis has been made that
how a woman is unsafe within their homes themselves, the problems which
threatens her survival but has to face has been manifested and an insight has
been made with the help of the first hand study of the problems intrinsic in the
mind set of the people around us. Priya Vijay in the third chapter critically
examines the status of surrogate mother in the whole set up of surrogacy in
 Preface vii

India. Their social and economic and health aspects related to surrogacy
arrangement and their exploitation in the whole process. Their human rights,
legal rights, right to life and their subjection to infertility clinics and relatively
prosperous commissioning parents raises doubt about the whole process of
surrogacy as being claimed to have beneficial for surrogate mother in the
backdrop of 28th Law Commission Report and 2016 ART Bill. Afkar Ahmad in
the fourth chapter analyses the substantial provision of law in under the umbrella
of international legal regime and national legal regime relating to trafficking in
women, tracing the judicial precedents laid down by the Supreme Court and
various High Courts in India. In fifth chapter Shreya analysis the open
defecation practice in Jharkhand, in which she highlight the problem of women
in 21st century because of open defection practices not only hurt the dignity of
women but also due to this practice crime rate is also increasing. She also
focus society attitude towards this practice and how its impact over the health,
privacy and dignity of the people in general and women in particular. The sixth
chapter which includes interview schedule method as a primary method of data
collection, an attempt as been made to investigate the pattern of women
empowerment in Pugu village of Jharkhand and the chapter tries to address the
issues like concept of empowerment and its dimensions in alliance with rural
women, the interconnection between women empowerment and health,
education, economic opportunities, etc. and the nature and extent of
empowerment issues of rural women. Aparna Choudhary’s in seventh chapter
discusses Armed Force Special Power Act (AFSPA) and how it not affecting
the democratic feature of Indian but due to these Act military and para-military
forces are using unrestricted power which violates several legal mechanisms
including Fundamental Rights and Human Rights. The last chapter eight, in
which Mukesh picks up the feminist concern with the women’s autonomy to
decide the birth spacing here, the study analyses the relationship between
women’s decision-making autonomy in a household and duration of her birth
interval. He stated that, illiteracy is one of the major cause due to that women
has loose their autonomy on birth spacing which affect women on health issues,
education, and low nutrition.
The eight essays in the collection examine a range of concerns ranging
from “typical” problems with fresh outlook to the subjects though directly relevant
to the issues concerning women but has not been a subject of critical reflection.

Dr. Sumant Kumar

Dr. Ranjeeta Muhkerjee
 Contents

Preface .................................................................................................... ...v

List of Contributors ................................................................................. xi

1. Women Empowerment in India: A Way Ahead ............................... 1

Sumant Kumar

2. Protectors as Perpetrators: A Study of Violence

against Women within the Closed Doors ...................................... 47
Ranjeeta Mukherjee

3. Rights of Surrogate Mother: Critical Assessment ...................... 78

Priya Vijay

4. Trafficking in Women in India: A Socio-Legal Perspective ......... 98

Afkar Ahmad

5. Sanitation in India: Challenges and Achievement

in Jharkhand .................................................................................. 120
Shreya Jain

6. Women Empowerment Issues in Pugu Village: A Sociological

Study in Gumla District of Jharkhand .......................................... 134
Megha Purohit
x Women’s Rights: Issues and Implications

7. Imprisoning the Last Breathe of Women Body:

Study of AFSPA .............................................................................. 146
Aparna Chaudhary

8. Does Autonomy of Women Decide Her Birth Spacing? ............ 154

Mukesh C. Parmar

Index .................................................................................................... . 165

 List of Contributors

Dr. Sumant Kumar

Assistant Professor,
Centre for Tribal and Customary Law,
Central University of Jharkhand,
Ranchi, Jharkhand

Dr.Ranjeeta Mukherjee
Assistant Professor,
Centre for Tribal and Customary Law,
Central University of Jharkhand,
Ranchi, Jharkhand

Priya Vijay
Asst Professor of Law,
National Law University,
Ranchi

Afkar Ahmad
Assistant Professor,
National Law University,
Ranchi
xii Women’s Rights: Issues and Implications

Shreya Jain
Research Scholar,
Human Right Education,
Department of Sociology,
Ranchi University

Megha Purohit
LL.M (Human Rights),
National Law School of India University,
Bangalore

Aparna Chaudhary
Research Scholar,
Centre for West Asian Studies,
JNU
New Delhi

Mukesh C. Parmar
Ph.D Scholar,
Jawaharlal Nehru University
New Delhi
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