"Just as a bird cannot fly with one wing only, a Nation can not march forward if the women are left behind".

-Swami Vivekanand

Introduction

Gender Equality which is also known as “Sexual Equality” is a situation in which the use of rights or opportunities by gender is unaffected. In other words, gender equality occurs when people of all genders have equal rights, responsibilities and opportunities (e.g. the economy, social life, politics, education etc). The GDI (Gender-Related Development Index), the Gender Gap Index and the Gender Equality Index are measures of overall gender equality in different countries.

India is the largest democracy in the world with a population of 1.33 billion and by 2050 may also become the world's largest population. While India progresses towards development goals, the lives of lots of people can be improved. In recent decades, India has made substantial progress towards achieving macroeconomic development along with improving vaccination rates, child nutrition and education enrollment rates. On the other hand, gender inequality remains against the backdrop of rapid economic growth. There is no improvement in the rate of violence against women. Women's participation in society is low, and the dowry and legacy practices filled with discrimination persist. In this article, the author wants to highlight on the Gender-related laws in our country and analyses whether they are safeguards or not.

History of Gender Inequality In India

In 2014, Emma Watson rightly said on Twitter: “Gender Equality not only liberates women but also men from prescribed gender stereotypes.” The beginning of gender inequality in Indian society lies in its patriarchal system. Eminent sociologist Sylvia Walbe said, "Patriarchalism is the process and system of social structure in which men dominate, oppress and exploit a woman." The exploitation of women is a several years old cultural phenomenon of Indian society. The patriarchal system gets its legitimacy and acceptance from our religious beliefs no matter what religion.

For example, According to Manu, the creator of ancient Indian Hindu law, "It is believed that a woman should be under her father during her childhood, under husband after marriage and under her son after she is old or widowed." She is not allowed to remain independent under any circumstances."

But Gender Equality is not just a women's issue. In 2018, a petition filed by the organization “Criminal Justice Society of India” demanded that women should be punished in cases of sexual harassment and rape like men because men can also suffer rape. The Supreme Court dismissed the petition saying that the making of law is the job of Parliament and that they will make a decision on it. The petition also mentioned the survey that was recently carried out on 222 Indian men and found that 16.1 per cent of the men were forced to have a relationship.

Legal and Constitutional Safeguards Against Gender Inequality

Several steps have been taken by the Indian Constitution to remove gender inequality, the Preamble of the Indian Constitution deals with the goals of achieving social, economic and political justice for everyone, as well as providing equality and opportunity to the level of its citizens.

Article 14 of the Indian Constitution says that "State shall not deny to anyone the equality before the law and equal protection of laws within the territory of India."

According to Article 15 of the Indian constitution, it also prohibits all discrimination based on separation on gender, religion, caste and place of birth.

Article 15 (3) of the Indian Constitution empowers any state to make special provisions for children and women.  Also, the Directive Principles of State Policy provide several provisions that help protect women and protect them from discrimination.

Article 16 of the Indian Constitution provides that there shall be equality of opportunity for all citizens and they shall not be discriminated based on religion, race, caste and sex.

Article 39(a) of the Indian Constitution makes it the duty of the State; in particular, direct its policy towards securing that citizens, men and women equally, have the right to an adequate means of livelihood.

Article 39(e) of the Indian Constitution provides that the health and strength of workers, men and women, and also the tender age of children are not abused and that citizens are not forced by economic necessity to enter avocations unsuited to their age or strength.

Article 51(A) (e) of the Indian Constitution provides, "it will be the duty of each citizen to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women."

Apart from this, there are also some provisions in the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Criminal Procedure Code, 1973 and Indian Evidence Act, 1872 which provide a sense of safety and security to women.

Important Case Laws

Air India v. Nergesh Meerza :

In this case, Air India's Employee Services Regulations 40 and 47 were challenged on the basis that a certain degree of disparity was created between women [AHs (Air Hostesses)] and men [AFPs (Air Flight Pursers)] and also certain differentiation on the part of AHs was also in dispute, i.e between AHs working for A.I. (Air India) which is the international organization and between I.A.C. (Indian Airlines Corporation) which is the domestic organization. The issues raised were:

  1. Whether Regulation 46 & 47 are violative of Articles 14,15, 16 of the Constitution of India and thus ultra vires in whole or part?
  2. Whether discretionary powers as enumerated under Regulation 47 can be deemed as being excessive delegation?

The court held the clauses regarding retirement and pregnancy as unconstitutional and thus ordered for them to be struck down as it was arbitrary and abhorrent to the notions of a civilized society. Although there are many constitutional rights available to women in India, the ground reality is quite different from this. Despite these provisions in the country even today, women are treated as second class citizens; men consider them as a means of fulfilling their sensual desires.

Atrocities with women are at their most dangerous level, the dowry practise is still prevalent today, and female foeticide is prevalent in our homes in an ideal form. This probably has no end.

This was about atrocities against women and constitutional safeguards. Now, what about men? Is there any provision in India that provides constitutional protection to the men with atrocities against them? If a crime is committed with a man, can he get justice under any provision? The answer is NO.

Section 375 of Indian Penal Code, 1860 which defines rape, begins with the word male. Means the law has also assumed that the exploiters will be only men.

In India, one of the finger-pointing research conducted by ET-Synovate in seven cities in the country in 2010, reveals that 32 per cent of men in Bangalore have experienced sexual harassment, in Delhi, 43 per cent of the victims of harassment have blamed women and 43 per cent of male boss and coworker.

Conclusion

Gender refers to the characteristics of women, men, girls and boys that are socially constructed and equality is the situation in which everyone has the same rights and advantages. So, the real meaning of gender equality is to provide equal rights and benefits to all genders. But does everyone have equal rights in India?

The rationale of the Indian Constitution is 'equality' but many statutory provisions do not meet this criterion, because from the society to the lawmakers, it is assumed that the role of a man has always been exploitative. This is the reason why there has been no comprehensive study on the issue of rape of men like a rape of women. This mentality is prevalent around the world, while many such cases have come up, which negates this thinking.

In the hashtag '#MeToo' on social media, women shared their experiences of sexual harassment, but are only women facing sexual abuse or are there people in the society who also target boys, youth or men? In Indian jails, the major reason for suicide is rape by fellow prisoners. There is a gender-neutral law from America to European countries and if we do not move in this direction, then it is certain that the basic sense of gender 'equality' mentioned in the Constitution automatically becomes zero. India's law should recognise that men can be a victim too.

We call the earth as mother and the sky as a father, just as this world is incomplete without anyone. In the same way, it is very important for all genders to coexist as the absence of one will end the world automatically. Crime happens with every gender, we just need to change our thinking. Because society belongs to us, we are not from society. The way we'll think, we will give the same thinking to our future generations.

"CHANGE YOUR MIND, SOCIETY WILL CHANGE AUTOMATICALLY "

References

About the Author: This post is prepared by Divya Shri Nandini, LLM (Criminal & Security Law) student at Shree Ramswaroop Memorial University. She can be reached at divyashreenandini@gmail.com 

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