Changing Terms of Political Discourse: Women's Movement in India, 1970s-1990s

Author(s): Indu Agnihotri and Vina Mazumdar

Source: Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. 30, No. 29 (Jul. 22, 1995), pp. 1869-1878
Published by: Economic and Political Weekly
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 Changing Terms of Political Discourse
Women's Movement in India, 1970s-1990s
Indu Agnihotri
Vina Mazumdar

The revolutionary changes which followed the two world wars createdfora and structures that promoted debat
on wonmen's rights. By the beginning of the 1990s however, the international context in which the struggle f
advance of women's rights was being waged had been transformed. Debates being actively promoted today twist the
very premises and values on which the movement had been based. It is against the background of these developments
which have influenced the women 's movement in India that one must evaluate the goals and directions of the movement
and locate its strengths and weaknesses.

I which the movement developed in recent question faded from the public arena
Introduction years, these would be (a) the decadal thrtist [GOT 1974; Mazumdar 1978].
provided by the preparations for the UN This is not to imply that no struggles
THE 20th centurv promoted the cause of Conference in Mexico, and the initiatives were waged during this period. But, with
gender justice by internationalising coming fortfi from the Non-Aligned the exception of the tempo built up before
struggles for equality by women and other Movement in this context; (b) the history the passage of the Hindu Code Bill, 1956,
oppressed people. Women's struggles of and relationship between earlier these could not form the basis of spurring
against their subordination were intertwined movements for freedom, equality and agitations which could catch the public
in varying degrees with ideologies and democracy, values which were subsequently imagination, cutting sectional demands and
movements based on the values of freedom, enshrined as basic political tenets in the organisations.
self-determination, equality, democracy Constitution of India, and the constraints In contemporary India the resurgence of
and justice. Confined earlier by locale or felt towards achievement of these in the women's movement and its contours
limited foci, these now found expression independent India, and (c) the influence of have to be seen in the light of: (I) The crisis
through movements against imperialism, ideas coming across through the various of state and government in the 70s going
for national liberation and social streams of the women's liberation into the emergency; (2) the post-emergency
transformation. The defeat of fascism and movements of the west. Thus equality, uipsurge in favour of civil rights; (3) the
the forced retreat of imperialism around democracy anid freedom were at the same mushrooming of women's organisations in
the mid-century paved the way for social time, actual, notional and ideological goals the early 1980s and the arrival of women's
advance of which gender relations were a which the women's movement addressed issue on the agenda; (4) the mid-1980s,
key componenlt along with the other broad in all their connotations including specific marked by a fundamentalist advance; and
objectives of human rights and the end of gender perspective and components. the 1 990s, when the crisis has deepened with
iniquitous social orders. The revolutionary regard to state, government and society.
changes which followed the two world II The women's movement in India is one
wars also created fora and structures that The Indian Movement of the many burgeoning efforts at reassertion
promoted debates on women's rights. The of citizen's claims to participate as equals
International Women's Decade was Although in India colonial rule and the in the political and development process.
initiated during this period of hope which freedom struggle marked the beginning of This places it in a situation of direct
also posited a new International Economic an awakening among women, differing confrontation with the forces of conservatism
Order. By the end of the decade, however, streams within the anti-imperialist anti- and reaction. The fundamentalist onslaught
this hope was already shaky [Mair 1985]. feudal struggle posited different, even in one country after another have exposed
In the mid- 1990s, the context in which the contentious images of identities for women the vulnerability of women's advance in
international struggle for advance of [Sangali and Vaid 1989]. But the nationalist most places. In the third world as well as
women's rights is being waged has been consensus symbolised in the Fundamental erstwhile socialist states, however, the
transformed. Debates being actively Rights Resolution of the Indian National combination of these with the onset/
promoted today twist the very premises and Congress, 1931, postulated freedom, acceleration of free market capitalism has
values on which the movement had been justice, dignity and equality for women as both strengthened the powers of the
based. Terms like empowerment, choice, essential for nation-building. The oppressors, as well as created new
reproductive freedom, spiritual autonomy, Constitution assured these rights. In the instruments for hegemony, by weakening
etc, are being appropriated by forces inimical post-independence period, however, the balancing mechanismns and ideologies
to the goals of the women's movement. Can women exploring avenues for socio- that sought to place limits on their rapacity.
the movement ensure the continued economic and political mobility came up In India the mid-1980s have seen an
existence of fora to mount pressure for against the limitations of a third world ex- onslaught on even existing rights of women
intervention in favour of more equitable colonial state. This posed conflicts between through a harking back to 'tradition' and
gender relations - both. at the level of their new rights and the values carefully 'culture' and the positing of images which
promoted by a longstanding patriarchal socialemphasise women's reproductive role as
international realpolitik. as well as at ground
level processes'? hierarchy. Social disabilities and gradual the only natural, historical one. The
It is important to note these international isolation from the politico-ideological fundamentalist/revivalist face of many
developments since they have influenced struggles that were shaping the nation- social movements today is directly opposed
the movement in India from the start. If building process led to the fragmentation of to the radical demands and upsurges coming
we were to spell out the parameters within the women's movement and the women's from below.

Economiic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995 1869

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 These decades in India have marked the
end of the age of complacency, apathy and
acceptance of the existing social order.
Undoubtedly. these stem from both
problems of transition as well as the
outcome of the world's largest experiment
in democracy. Shifts in foci and awareness
of problems that impinged on women's
lives, the social construction of gender
relations and the identity of women from
dif'ferent classes in their attempts to resolveeducation, the economy, society and the
the problems of the national economy and
polity occurred during a period of
dissolving certainties that characterised
local, national or global systems.
This changing character and the
contradictions are reflected within the
governmental structures and in a shifting
attitude towards the women's movement. A
major question facing all governments in
office has been how to respond to the
movement and its demand to place the
women's question on the political agenda.
The government's response has been
teetering bctween responding to the
conservative or the radical forces in dealing and a half) and the rising trend of violence identities, or even political dissidence. Such
with the women's question.
The women's movement, in turn, has
mounte(d pressures on the state and
government from the opposite end of the
spectrumi} Itself experiencing major
transformaitions, it has grown immensely
despite pressuires from diverse areas. Within establish its political identity by right of decades, however, there has been a change
the movement diversities manifested
themselves in many ideological cleavages
and fragmented, regionally uneven growth.
But the issues on which women tirst
articulated their visible opposition covered
a vast terrain - ranging from those which
were gender-specific to those which
impinged on citizen's rights, class
formations, values and the directioninto
transformation.
The main concerns of the movement, as
it emerged, were laid out in the issues opened This, however, does not mean that the
up by the report of the Committee on the
Status of Women in India (CSWI) which
drew attention to the wide diversities in
'culturally' prescribed genderroles in India's science, technology, research and develop-
plural society. The committee raised serious ment, management of natural resources and four law teachers in their protest to the chief
doubts about the 'development' or
'modernisation' models that not onlythree
the real differences that revolved round
class and ethnic history, but exaggerated the equality.
influence of religion, culture and 'social
attitudes' on gender role prescriptions.
Questioning the continued 'invisibility of
women' in areas/sectors where they were
largely involved, the CSWI pleaded for a
renewed concern that would reflect real life
issues and aspirations of the majority of
women [GOI 1974:3].
This disenchantment of women with the
post-independence 'development' scenario
was not a stance dictated by exogenous
political considerations. Demographic
indicators like the accelerated decline in
the sex-ratio, increasing gender gaps in complexity of India's social and political
life-expectancy, mortality and economic entity of a democracy-in-making, as well as
participation, or the rising migration rate a democracy endangered.
were disturbing enough. Combined with
this was the utter failure of state policy to III
live up to its constitutional mandates in Violence: Case of Expanding Arenas
any field of national development. The
CSWI noted clear linkages between From its earliest phase in the late 1970s,
existing and growing social and economic the contemporary women's movement
disparities and women's status in perceived growing violence as a major
issue, bringing 'visibility' to the movement
polity [GOI 1974:234], putting the demand itself. This identification violence has also
for equality on an akctual historical terrain. been interpreted in many ways, by analysts
It also formed a starting point for women's of the movement. Primarily of course, it
studies. ' has been seen as a 'rallying cry' or a 'rallying
In this paper we have confined ourselves point'.
to the movement's responses to violence, Violence, however, is perpetrated through
fundamentalism and the debate on the given institutions of the state, community,
economic role and processes. We have the family and society at large. It draws
focused on these not only because of sustenance from prevailing ideologies which
limitations of space, but because we see seek to propagate status quoism through
a close link between the marginalisation advocacy of 'falling-in-line', be it in response
of women as economic beings (a trend to transgression of social norms or laws,
which is now on the rise despite the which are defended in the name of age-old
movement's interventions in the last decade customs and tradition, religious or caste
targeting women. In India today the most status quoists perceived the movement's
modern techniques of propaganda are used adoption of violence as a threat to basic
to project women as consumers and social institutions like the family, community
reproductive beings rather than producers; and construction of gender roles developed
and, above all as members of one or other by the elites and projected as universal to
particular community which seeks to "Indian" culture - at all levels. Over the
birth, religion or culture. Fundamentalism in this perception.
provides an ideological framework while
globalisation and glorification of the market RAPE
provides the operative instrument to
demolish women's claims to equality, It was the widespread, national level
freedom and dignity as individuals. This campaign, in the course of 1979-80, on the
awesome combination poses a challenge Mathura case which brought women's issues
which is forcing women's organisations onto the public agenda. The Supreme Court's
of social
rethinking, soul-searching and acquittal of two policemen involved in the
questioning of their roles and identitics in rape of a minor tribal girl brought to the fore
the reshaping of the struggle. several crucial aspects of women's
oppression, viz, the roles of class and caste
movement has not intervened in other criticalin oppression of women, and the issue of
sectors that affect the overall processes of accountability of public servants and the
national transformation, e g, education, judiciary in achieving the constitutional
guarantees. Th6se were pointedly raised by
food security. We have here focused on justice.
ignored
main aspects which are critical
Must illiterate, labouring, politically mute
caste, in the struggle for gender
determinants
Mathuras of India be continually condemned
to their pre-Constitutional India fate?...I
The focus on these themes reflects both
the views of the authors as well as that of Though the agitation sparked off by the
activists in the movement. The method Mathura case led to significant changes in
followed is one of fairly widespread the Evidence Act, the Criminal Procedure
consultation with activists through Code and the Indian Penal Code, including
workshops organised in different regions the to
introduction of a category of custodial
get a feedback on what activists considered rape, the changes introduced were not
to be the major issues looking back on the sufficient. The concept of power rape was
last two decades.2The paperdoes not attempt resisted and has only recently been admitted
to write a history of the movement. It only through an amendment in the Civil Rights
focuses on the issues, trends and challenges Act. Significant loopholes nevertheless
as these have emerged while locating remain, both with regard to the law and its
women in the overall context of the implementation.

1870 Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995

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 While the movement's understanding of on the issue of domestic violence. The more, and also achieved more. The question
the issue has widened, su- ess has been successive campaigns brought into focus that may be raised is, was it and is it
limited due to both lacunae in the conceptual the trauma women undergo within the possible to fight dowry in a social context
definition as well as monitoring of confines of the ever-enduring family, where both caste and consumerism are
procedures. The definition of rape does not glamorised by policy-makers and elite penetrating deeper? Matrimonial columns
extend to marital rape and anomalies exist groups in general, as "the basic foundation of leading dailies now proudly classify
between the Child Marriage Restraint Act of Indian society". advertisements along caste lines, and
and the rape law in that consent is not required By 1982 organisations in Delhi and consumerism has spread its tentacles far
for intercourse in marriage before the age elsewhere built up formidable evidence of and wide in Indian society. The DVCM's
of 18. Also, whereas the character of the dowry-related murders being passed off as demand of comprehensive legislation
victim is not supposed to be a consideration 'suicide' or accidents [Kishwar and Vanita including changes in the whole gamut of
in determining rape, clauses in earlier 1984; Kumar 1992]. In several cases activists inheritance/succession/property laws has
legislation to the contrary effect continue to had themselves recorded the dying gone unheeded, prompting even feminists/
be used and even the Supreme Court has declaration of victims and urged the courts erstwhile feminists to "rethink" dowry
violated the principle of custodial rape on to treat this as evidence. Newspaper hcadlines [Kishwar 1988a; 1988b]. Dowry, far from
this count. There is also the element of screamingly reminded readers that 'dowry being a 'deep-rooted' Indian tradition, is the
'provocation' or, as the Supreme Court put deaths' were on the increase. But the fastest way to make quick money in India
it recently while reducing the sentence in government, the police and other official while also claiming social sanction and
one case, inability to resist temptation so that
agencies alongwith society at large slumbered legitimacy [Srinivas 1983]. In fact despite
rape became a 'crime of passion'. Apart in insensitivity and the convenient middle the most visible solidarity shown on the
from all this there is the inability and class ploy was used to dismiss torture of a issue in the media, concerned women
unwillingness of the state machinery to act young bride as an 'internal family matter'. parliamentarians and activists, the issue has
in a manner as to collect evidence in order It was a consistent, widespread mass today been relegated to the background from
to prove rape. As has been highlighted in campaign both individually by organisations the public eye in the face of more 'immediate'
the case of rape of nuns in Gujraula, UP, and jointly under the aegis of the Dahej and 'pressing' problems, which are not
the law leaves sufficient loopholes for Virodhi Chetna Manch (DVCM) that finally altogether separate from the social agenda
agencies such as the concerned police and mounted pressure on the government to act, inherent in the anti-dowry campaign. In fact
medical personnel to not act, with perfect if only out of political expediency. The Law with the given state of a son-preference in
impunity. Of late, the movement is Commission undertook a suo motu study on Indian minds amniocentesis and sex-selection
emphasisinlg the rising trend in child improving
rape, the law to combat this social also draw their rationale from the dowry
and demanding new legislation to combat menace more effectively. The parliament menace.
the trend. appointed a joint committee of both houses
of parliament to review the working of the AMNIOCEN1ESIS AND SFX SELEC-rION
ANTI-DOWRY AGITATION Dowry Prohibition Act. Though members
were drawn from all political parties, it In 1974 the department of human
Ot' all the agitations focused on violence included several leaders of national women'scytogenetics, All India Institute of Medical
the one that most touched the public organisations and led to one of the rare Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, started a
imagination, the media and the widest occasions of "all the women speaking with sample survey with the aid of amniocentesis
sections outside the pale of organisations, one voice" [Government of India 1981; to detect foetal abnormalities. By 1975, the
was that which protested against dowry and Palriwala 1985].4 AIIMS knew that the tests were being
dowry-related violence. It is the anti-dowry What came into focus in the course of the followed by abortion of female toetuses.
agitation which emerged as a rallying cry. campaign was a clear link between dowry While the AIIMS tests were stopped by
The 'atrocities against women' headline, and the urge to accumulate consumer items 1979, reports came in from Amritsar in
attracted attention in the post-emergency as well as mobilise resources to be used as Punjab where medical entrepreneurs openly
scenario of 'excesses', and the 'Brides Are advertised their services referring to
'investment' or 'capital' to start petty business
Not for Burning' slogan focused media or enterprise [Karat and Agnihotri 1993]. daughters as a 'liability' to the family and
attention both in India and abroad on These facts were so stark that for the high a 'threat' to the nation's population
women's lives. The question has often been court to assert that the giving of gifts was problem. Expectant parents were exhorted
posed, whether it perpetuated the 'women customary was sure to invite the wrath of to avail of the services of clinics to rid
as victim' syndrome? But for those who women's organisations. The irony of the themselves of the daughters to come. At
became crusaders in the tight against dowry high court assertion seemed greater in view a meeting convened in New Delhi in July
the movement transmitted a pulsating sense of the fact that in 21 years since the Dowry 1982 a three-point position was arrived at
of energy which over time got transformedProhibition Act of 1961, only one convictionwherin: (a) government was requested to
into a brand'of activism which asserted had taken place. restrict use of amniocentesis to only teaching
women's agency in social change. It was this However, as anyone in the movement and research establishments; (b) the Indian
public assertion of what had till then been would today testify, even as increasing Medical Council was requested to take severe
seen as a private agenda, which shook older 'cases' of harassment and torture are action against members indulging in
organisations from a seemingly unending registered with the numerous complaint unethical practices; and (c) women's
slumber. cells as well as legal aid centres, the menace organisations were to remain vigilant against
One of the amendments in the Criminal of dowry has increased mainfold. Did the the spread of the practice for commercial
Law, Section 498-A, passed in the wake focus shift from fighting dowry to only purposes [Mazumdar 1994].
of the agitation, encompassed for the first highlighting dowry deaths, asks an activist? While government did issue some
time a definition of cruelty which included Why could we not end dowry, ask others? circulars to this effect, not such action
not just physical but mental cruelty as There are no simple answers. While analysts followed. In the meantime the sex deter-
well. One of the most commonly used have critiqued the movement for an mination business had came to stay, with
clauses in cases filed by women, the emphasis on legal remedies, the fact is that clinics spreading even to small towns and
invoking of the clause has in eff'ect the movement addressed itself to much
focused information on this count reaching families

Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995 1871

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which were otherwise unaware of tech- increasing leave provisions for abortions. Claiming sanction and power to wield
nological advances. Today the business These concerns were articulated forcefully authority on the basis of various brands of
flourishes more rampantly in North India, before a recent expert committee appointed identities, there is in contemporary India
where in some places which earlier practised by government of India to draft a new national a powerful ganging-up of conservative and
female infanticide, female foeticide has come population policy.6 The committee's report, reactionary forces which aggressively
in. From the south. alarming reports have while upholding gender equity as crucial, impose moral prescripts. Where other
come in of' the prevalence of female in- and declaring its position as pro-poor, pro- processes fail, gender equality and women' s
tfanticide among the Kallars in Tamil Nadu. women and pro-nature, recommends rights to freedom is opposed through
Ironically, this was not a tradition of the disincentives and other measures that have intimidation, humiliation and violence in
community. Approval and connivance for united many women's organisations in complete violation of norms of civil society.
the practice are being granted by an emergingprotest and one woman memberdissociating What is important is that even as the
new prosperous community leadership which herself from the recommendations".' It has movement for women's rights has
includes educated professionals as well as also stirred up a public debate. strengthened, there is the opposite
politicians. phenomenon of increasing social acceptance
In 1985, The Forum Against Sex- POLITICAL VIOLENCE of violence and its use for political purposes.
Determination and Sex-Pre-Selection This violence is limited neitherto the personal
(FASDSP) was formed in Bombay. The In a highly charged political environment, sphere nor to the framework of m an-woman
Forum addressed itself to the entire spectrum violence against women too is viewed relationships [Karat and Agnihotri 1993].
of new reproductive technologies. It sought through coloured lenses. Whereas the It is notable that response from social
wider alliances, undertook surveys, and tiled movement has attempted to contextualise scientists on the theme of violence in general
a public interest litigation. A private the woman victim on the basis of prevalentand specific to women has not been very
member's bill introduced in the state social inequalities, the prevalent divisions illuminating. There have been few studies
assembly, forced the government to move in society take the edge out of the of the patterns of violencelvr even causal
into action. The bill, finally adopted by the condemnation of the crime per se. Thus in analysis [Das 1990; Datar 1993]. While the
Maharashtra government in 1988 had several every incident of violence against women, movement itself identified violence against
lacunae as does the central government's bill the attempt is made to underplay the crime women in many ways and has expanded its
passed in July 1994. A question that has itself by focusing on the identity/position of horizon in terms of definition of violence
arisen from these long campaigns and the the perpetrator as well as the victim in order also, corresponding perspectives in terms of
debate is, what about the women who practiseto mobilise support on the basis of defined analysis of the phenomenon are singularly
female foeticide or infanticide? The new law parameters of polarisation in the specific lacking. Within the movement of course
treats them as guilty and punishable. But context. These can be caste, community, differing perspectives continue to persist.
does a woman in India have the right to regional or even politico-ideological. Thus While there is a shift away from the earlier
choose or decide? rape and other atrocities inflicted on women emphasis on domestic violence alone, there
aqd others in Nagaland, Manipur, Assam,is a simultaneous trend of subsuming other
POPULATION POLICY Tripura, Punjab or Kashmir by the armed arenas of conflict - communal conflicts,
or par-military forces can be condoned by fundamentalism, even economic conflicts
A strange link has united sex-selection the administration as well as government within 'violence against women'?
followed by temale foeticide and female under cover of action taken to put down Conceptually, this gives primacy to a ge
infanticide. Both cite national population subversive activities. A more perverse perspective, but it oversimplifies conflict
concerns as the instigation for these anti- definition of pro-national activity in complete other spheres and other levels of societal
women acts. The government of India's violation of constitutional guarantees, human existence, by reducing them to a one-
current efforts to formulate a new population rights as well as women's rights wQuld be dimensional affair. Such conceptualisation
control policy in consultation with or at the difficult to find. It is-this 'teaching a lesson' also ignores differences in perception of
behest of its international benefactors, to curb dissidence (whatever its shape or these varied conflicts among diverse groups
include a series of measures foisted on form) which is disturbing. Given the trend of women.
women after the initial attempts at of growing criminalisation of politics in
vasectomy during the emergency period India, this form of violence can be crucial IV
met with stiff resistance. The notable in keeping women away from public life.' Fundamentalism and
features of this policy are that (a) it is In fact this also reflects a cynical societal Communalism
premised on the assumption of the response to transgression by women of given
population bomb theory; (b) women norms featureof social behaviour, which in turn are The wave of fundamentalist xenophobic
as the main targets since they are thedefined agencyalong lines of caste and status. upsurges sweeping across the world threatens
of reproduction; (c) the contraceptives This applies to the increasing social the international women's movement as a
include steroids and hormonal injectables acceptance of violence against women. In whole. In India the complex social structures,
with long-term effects on the health of the evonomic constraints and political
recent years there has been a spate of incidents
user; (d) no provision/consideration for of stripping, rape and other forms of opportunism have provided ample breedin
monitoring of impact.5 humiliation inflicted on dalits as well as ground for the growth of revivalist ideolog
Women's organisations have been fighting other women in different parts of the and identity politics. These have adopted
for several years against the entry of these country in recent years. This is in addition aggressive postures, showing scant regard
hazardous contraceptives which "exploit to earlier instance of lynching of women for the Indian Constitution or the fundamental
women's desperate need for 'safe' on suspicion of being 'witches'. Many have rights it guarantees. All religious, ethnic or
contraception", and proposals for coercive, seen in these the reflection of new political cultural fundamentalists are basically hostile
'fascist' punitive measures such as changes configurations and conflicts arising out of to genderequality whateverthe rhetoric they
in the Pcople s Representation Act to the aspirations of upwardly mobile profess.
backward castes. This comes along with
disqualily those withi i wire than two children, As early as 1983, 'a deal' was reportedly
reassertion uf authority by traditional
and in the Maternity U. 'lcfjite Act to restrict struck between the government of India and
the benefits up to tfih children, while community and religion-based structures. the Akali Dal, spearheading the agitation for

1 872 Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995

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a Sikh state, to withdraw tlhe agitaltionI if' Petitions chaillenging the new laiw as anti-and secularism as more positive. e:thicul
govcrnmeint of India accepted a separatc coinstitutional are still pending hearing invalties,
the and to discuss links with other
personal law for Sikhs, Ilhc hill dralfted hy Supreme Court. Meanwhilc, orgalnisations progressive organisations.'
the Dal would hlave deprived Sikh women report that many more Muslim women comc Activists express concern al the rupture
of their rights to a share in their tihers' to discuss their problems and participate in with the essence of progressive movements
property (providletd tindcr Hindu SLIccession other campaigns ror womcn's rights."' of the 19th and early 20th centuries. The
Act 1956); of' right of' divorce except In September 1987 in Deoralai, a village growth of a metropolitan culture and
through the dispensation ol the religious in Rajasthan, Roop Kanwar, a young bride continued use of English as the liingu,cafraw;ca
heads (against the provisioii of the Hindu burnt to death sitting atop the funeral pyre of officialdom ollen makes the non-English
Mairriage Act), andI would have legitimisecd of her dead husband, while several thouisands speaking feel alieniated from the emerging
polygamy through thc customii of' cladar of people watched and cven chanted slogans elite cultural ethos. This disjuLncti#e situation
andaz6,i, claimed as a 'Sikh custom'. Protestsglorifying sati. Though a few in the media was capitalised by communal parties who
from national womcn's organisations and came out with strong statements against the stepped in to fill the void.'4
others, backed by several Sikh wotmen. event, many played it up as irit was a return Of late there are many activists who have
including five villagc mahila mandals, to pristine glory, likening Roop Kanwar to cstablished dialogue with reform movemcnts
apparently compelled GOI to change its a devi (goddess), who presented a sharp and women's groups coming up within the
mind and no bill was introduced. contrast to the urban elite, westernised religious framework. It is argued that this
1985 howevcr marked a shift in Indian feminist women who had disowned their is necessary since religion seems to be the
politics. Pro-liberalisation statemcntg and traditional values. Sati therefore was sought only outlet sanctioned by society for advance
measures by the government on the economic to be projected as a sort of ethnic re-assertion of women's latent talents. There is also an
tront began to be combined with of indigenous womanhood." ongoing debate regarding retrieving religion
compromiscs and even advancinig the cause The state governnient remained paralysed, from fundamentalists and highlighting the
of fundamentalists. P'eoplc's disenchantment despite massive protests by women's groups, progressive aspects of socio-religious reform
with the nature and pace of India's and a court order to stop the celebrations of movements. Others argue that such
developiicnt was soughit to be offset by the event. But protests from all over the instrumental use of religion, at this critical
successive governmllents by playing the country forced the government of India to juncture of its politicalisation would not
'communal card' with eacih community to intervene, belatedly, with a quite uinnecessaryonly be self def'eatinig, but might eveni prove
win their suplport. and ineffcctive law against both the act andhazardous, since it may lead to the assumption
May 1986 witnessed a total surrender by the glorification of sati. A strange feature that rel'orm too can come only throughi
the govcrnment to Islamic fundamentalism. of this law is to make the victim, if she preordained idioms in denial of secular
The Muslim Women's (Protection of Rights cscaped death. culpable for attempted space. Activists from minor-ity communities
on Divorce) Act 1986, deprived divorced suicide. '5 argue forcet'ully that they can advance only
Muslim women of their right to seek Women's organisations, some sciolars if the majority does so. Respecting people's
maintenalnce under section 125 of the and legal experts argued that sati was murder, faitlis is one thing. But excessive
Criminal Proce(lure Code, a secular law open that its worship in Rajasthan and elsewhere preoccupation with religious 'analysis with
to all communiities [Enginieer, 19871. was being encouraged by the rich Marwari the movement would endanger the fragile
The act came in the wake of a year-long business community and the landed Rajputs. solidarity that has been achieved.'5
debate on the Supreme Court judgment in They also prophesied that glorification of The movement has soiught to counter
the Shah Bano case. While upholding a such heinous crimes would encourage communal propaganda amongst women.
Muslinm woman's right to this legal remedy violence as well as the positing ol a family Organisations have intervenied accordinig to
not available to them under Islamic personal and community bound identity for women. their capacities in riot situations to provide
law, the court observed that it was higih time relicf'as well as to starit a process ol'dialogue
AYODIIYA: PRELUDE AND AFTERMATH
for government to think ol a uniform civil between womeii of dit'ferent communities.
code. In the months thal followed. Muslim In December 1992 when aggrcssive Hindu Apart from several local initiatives by the
f'undamenltalists organised tlhemcselves for a fundamnenitalists demnolished a 500-year old myriad womecn's organisationls. at least two
show-downi with gover-niment, accusing it of tnosque in Ayodhya. claiming that it was a rallies of'several thousand women each were
interference with Muslim Personal Law. It mandir(temple) whliich marked the birthplace held in Ayodlya. 1989. and Lucknow, 1992.
is no coincidenice that the campaign of Lor d Rama. the government's paralysis Nevertiheless, as had been witnessed on
proceeded alongside protests against the: was
re- fully exposed, indicating the depth of previouLi occasions, when a clash took place
opening of the gates of' the Babri masjid the criisis of state and government. It also betweeii women and fundamentalism, the
which Hindu fundamentalists claimed was deepened cynicism about the state's inaction of thc goverinment on the plea of
the birth place of Lord Rama. Women's legitimacy. The demolition also sparkedneutrality
)off was a stance which itself
organisations campaigned anid drew supportriots in sevcral parts of the country. constituted an active intervention.
from large numbers of Muslim women The overtly political manipulatiotis of 'I'he fundanmcnialist/communalist organi-
especially from the poorer sections, funcIamentalists also tound other victims. sations, aware of the ferment in women's
intellectuals anid reform groups tromSeveralthe scholar s were threatened or minds, are today making a bidl to cliannelise/
comnmunity against the bill. The Bharatiya harassed lor not adhering to fundamentalist harness the nascent consciousness about
Janata Party however, suddenly espoused versions while writing cultural. rcligious women's rights for theirown purpose. Taking
the demand for the uniform civil code. or even literary histories with a gender advantage of women's deep attachment to
tocus. There have becn several such
Muslim fundamncjitalists responided with the religion they are today f'loating new
hysteria of 'Islam in Danger'. Despite sharp organisations and f'ronts such as the
indications of growing intoleranice. These
diflerences within the ruling party and the Hindu Mahila Sammelan and the Durga
were not confined to any single community.
resignation of a Muslim minister (who had Repeatedly. during discussions on the Vahini. wherein women's role as mothers,
opposed the hill), the bill was enacted with moveimient. activists expressed the view piogenitors and defenders of the faith, etc,
the help of a three-line-wlhip issued by the that countering comnmunal politics is theaire highlighted along with their role in the
Congress to its members [Hasan 1989: greatest challenge before the movement.family. Fundamentalists of all hues have
Palriwvala and Agnihotri 19931. Many expressed the need to define religion
movcd in this dlirection.

Economic anid Political Weekly Jtilu 22. 1995 1873

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 Awareness of the global nature of this (c) In none of the areas had women been focus in the search for alternative strategies
threat only increases the need to understand included in the peace committees set up to of' development - with organised grotips of
the basis or reasons for the spread of restore normalcy; and women from the grass roots as primary agents
lundatmentalist or communal ideologies, and (d) No thought had been given to the of change.
their persistent hold on many women. The psychological rehabilitation of traumatised A new national government in 1977
connections betweeni state, government and children, who witnessed acts of violence opened up various development policies
communial forces within the country are against their families. for review.'9 The combined pressure of a
apparent. But what are the global forces that The delegation also came up with some group of women members of parliament
lie hidden behind this phenomenon? The questions about women's organisations in from different political parties, some
Indian experience certaiinly does not support
the context of Ahmedabad, for, concerned bureaucrats and a leading social
the interpretation of such movements as a scientist (the late Raj Krishna) in the new
even the most committed work among
revolt against the spread of materialist values. Planning Commission led to the constitution
vulnerable sections of women is not capable
Evidence is quite contrary to this thesis. On of enabling such women to liberate them- of several working groups, to search for
the other hand, the anti-women face to the alternative strategies to arrest the
selves from the pressures of divisive identity
new trend of communalism indicates a politics, without a conscious direction to marginalisation of the majority of women -
rupture with past cultuLral values cutting
confront this type of politics which is so especially the poorer - through prevalent
across religions. inimical to women's rights and the movementdevelopment policies. These working groups,
Given the patriarchal ideology of famnily for equality [YWCA 1993:23-241. which included both women's studies
and community honour, during riots women researchers and some activists, received as
were invariably the primiary targets of attack V a major input a memorandum authored by
by the other group and were subjected to Women as Economic Beings the ICSSR's Advisory Committee on
rape and humiliation in order to devalue and Women's Studies. The memorandum
demoralise membCrs of the 'other' If violencc was the rallying issue for highlighted the problems of inicreasing
comilnunity. However, activists feel that women's organiisations, the inarginalisation
devaluation of women in the economy and
women's role as instigators of violence also and impoverishment of the majority of society, and recommended special strategies
requires careful analysis which can only women within the transforming economy for employment, health and education.2"
emerge from developing greater insights became the entry point tor academics into These documents, along with the CSWI's
into the ways in which caste, community the movement. The CSWI's initial analysis report and some of its miajor
and gender intersect. This clhallenges an was basedn more on inferences, the cries ofrecommnendations were to form th
essentialist conistruction ot the teminine thousands of poor women across the counitry
thrust of demands by a network of national
idcltity.'I At the saime time, instances voiced before the committee, and women's organisations that came into
abound of women playing a compassionate existenice,
demographic evidence of a secular trend ofinformally in 1980. The
role in protecting membiers of the other decline in women's value in the economy memorandum lhdiani Women in the Eiglhties
community. olten incurring personal risk. and society as a whole. The complexities of DeveoIopne/nilmi)eralives, one of the firs
Such acts were also in contravenition with the relationslhip between macro-economic joint statements hy women's organisations
the expressly stated intenit of ideolo(gues changes and women's status issues - at stated that:
and the wishes ot their own ftamily or different levels of society - had been ...unless explicit provision for the imperative
community groups. neglected by social analysts till then. The developmental needs of women is made in
These acts of compassion, however, need committee appealed to the social science the Sixth Five-Year Plan, the conditions of
to be understood against the ideological community to study this relationship on a women will continue to decline notwith-
rhetoric ol communalism because many of continuous basis [GOI 19741. standing constitutional pledges ot equality
the woImleln subscribed to it. The cmergent Coincidinig with the increasing intensity and justice and the parliamnentary mlandate
paradox was women sympatlhisinig with the of critiques of the dominant model of for removal of dispatrities aiid discrimination
victimhood of the minority groups anld yet econonmic growth emanating from various [All India Women's Conference 19801.
mouthina particularly rabid ideological parts ot the third world, womeni's studies in It reconmmencded that the family/household
positions. Post-emergency India has seen India began and grew rapidly in its initial approaclh in programme thrusts be replaced
many com1munal riots but the nature of stages to study this interaction.7 The by "explicit mention of' women as a target
violence witnessed in the last round after the Women's Studies Programme of the Indian group", since the 'invisibility' of women to
mosque demolition episode was marked by Council of Social Science Research helped planners and administrators was rooted in
the specitic targeting of women for sexual to start off a research process heavily biasedlthe "tendency to view women only through
attacks and perversities intlicted primarily in favour of 'invisible' women. i e, poor the screen of families and households and
on wotmien from the minority community. working women in rural and urban areas. not as individuals in their own right". This
A joint delegationl of niational women's This focus not only fecd new information reinforced
to the perspectives of women's
organisations whichi visited three of the riot- the movement but transformed many of the economic role as "marginal and
atffected cities in February 1992 found some academics into active participants in the supplemental" [All India Women's
other signifl icant features [YWCA 1993]. women's movement, where they exerted it Conference 19801. The demands included
(a) The women who were the most aflected definite influence in the choice of priorities a special component approach with
in the riots were the ones whose needs were and lines of advocacy for dialogues with earmarked resources and separ ate monitorin
the 'least attended to' and relief itself had policy-makers. The focus on economic atrrangemenits in each of the sectorall
become a cause for 'f urther exploitation, themes by the Indian Association ot programme thrusts; inclusion of child care
corruption, poisonous propaganda"; Women's Studies in its National Conferences centres within the Minimum Needs
(b) Over the years "sonme amount of Programme; and the demand forjoint 'pattas'
facilitated the interaction between academics
comMLUnal relocationi of popullations' had and activists. (land titles) for women and men already
taken place as an outcome of urban housing A third factor was the emergence of some voiced by poor peasanit women.'
scheenes, which had contri buted to alienationlarge organisations of poor women in the Not surprisingly some of the demands led
and growth of suspicion along with lack of informal sector." The dynamism in struggle to a 'sharp exchange' with regard to the
communic:ation between gTroups; demonstrated by these groups became a major "philosophy of the family-household

1874 Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995

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approach". The official representatives came government of India hosted the second in Delhi which was then followed by several
in for attack since the women maintained NAM Conference on Women and Develop- state-level discussions.
that "the planners' defence of the family ment, and the official delegation included In their criti(ue of the NPP, women's
seemed to be motivated by status quoism" 22several leaders of the national women's organisations pointed out that the proposed
Despite the government's reluctance - this organisations. Not content with this, the plan's recommendation to bring women
dialogue, backed by several womein MPs Delhi-based network of organisations held "into the mainstream of development"
from opposition parties who were members/its own review a week before the NAM ignored "the reality of women's
leaders of a network of national women's Conference and separately distributed their marginalisation being the result of such
organisation resulted in the appearance of report to all delegations [GOI 1985]. 'mainstream' development". Earlier, NAM's
a chapter oni Women and Development in But the tide receded fast, for reasons New Delhi Document had also admitted that
the Sixth Five-Year Plan for the first time discussed earlier. The widening divergence marginalisation had been "intensified by the
in the planning history of India (Sixth Five- between the perspective of the government current processes of economic change and
Year Plan 1980-85, Chapter 27). of India and movement-based initiatives on may continue in future" [GOI 1985].
Acknowledginig the government's own gender roles, issues and participation became The critique found that the NPP's approach
tailure to achieve gender equality, the Plan
clcar with the release of two documents in omitted the earlier thrust for convergence ot
stated explicitly that without economic 1988. economic and social services with
independence, equal access to education, Shranmshakti, the Report of the National organisation for collective strength and
skill-training, and family planning services,
Commission on Self Employed Women and participation, and demonstrated a trend
the constitutional guarantee of equality Women in the Informal Sector, to an extent towards centralisaion, disregarding the
would remain a myth (Sixth Fi ve-Year Planrepresented the voice of a substantial section ongoing debates on the need for
1980-85, Chaptei' 27). Hencef'orth all anti-
of the women's movement and of women's decentralisation and democratisation of the
poverty programmes were directed to include
studies' scholars, who were inducted into its planning process. The proposed reservation
women as targets. In cases of assets various task forces. Activists helped in of 30 per cent seats for women in elective
distributed by government (productive/ organising public hearings with women bodies, to be filled by co-option or
homestead land, technology, etc)- workers in the informal sector - in both urban
nomination in the initial stage, revealed the
governmnent promised to "endeavour to and rural areas [Government of India 1988]. government's interest in subverting the
provide joint titles to husband and wife", There were shades of divergenceordifference representative process. Another real danger
plus give priority to 'female hcaded in emphasis in the approach to the problem came from the 'preferential emphasis' to be
houselholds' (Sixth Five-Year Plan 1980-85, of women in the informal sector. A large given to the unorganised sector.
Chapter 27). section of women activists went along with Rejecting all these anti-democratic
Womeni have comiiprised a crucial government in its active promotion and proposals, women's organisations demanded
componenit ol those struggling for land and
special emphasis on the role of women in (a) the constitution of statutory, autonomous
forest rights, aigainst the havoc wrouIghtthe by self-employed and home-based sectors, women's commissions at the centre and in
conistruction of' large dams and ecological while others differed with this approach. the states with a broad-based, representative
composition; (b) inclusion of child-care as
The latter felt that this reinforced the process
disasters, struggles l'or fishing rights in coastal
waters, f'or recognition as workers in of marginalisation and was a retreat on a priority within minimum needs from the
governmental networks ot health and child government's earliercommitment to bringing next plan onwards; (c) ratification of the
care services, as urbani unorganised labour,women into the 'productive' sphere. The International Convention on Elimination
migrant labour and rural workers [Sarkar dilemma was a genuine one. No one disputed of Discrimination Against Women; and
1995 forthcomingl. In all these they have that the limited opportunities for economic (d) due recognition of national
fought for basic r ights as workers, for equal earnings should be expanded and work organisations of women at all levels of the
wages and better working conditions. conditions in this sector be improved. The planning and decision-making processes.27
Microstudies have highlighted the role point at issue was whethertaking cognisance The movement has adopted a multi-
women play in all these sectors. But a f'ullerof the fa;ct that at stake was the survival of pronged strategy on this issue. While the
history of these numerous and multifarious enlire households one should settle for little specific skills of women's studies' scholars
struggles is still awaited. 'hits andl crumbs'. As one economist put it, have been directed at evolving a critique of
The women's movemenit has consistently "the women 's movement should have fought the macro-level policies of government, grass
demanded implementation of genuine land harder for gender equality in the labour roots level initiatives to develop alternatives
reform. Nevertheless defenders of the market/force".25 have been stepped up. One of the biggest
'family' accused women's organisations ot' The National Perspective Planl for Women mobilisations of women in Delhi from all
arresting 'distributivejustice' by deemanding (NPP) up to the year 2000 was, on the other over the country, in September 1989, was
women's right to a share of productive hand, prepared by a team of consultants tor of over 20,000 women demanding the right
resources. A study of land ceiling laws the Department of Women and Child to work.21
Development with no interaction with
enacted by different states brought out clearly Women's organisations have mush-
that many of the ceiling laws, were activists. The draft, placed for endorsement roomed - sometimes combining issues at
discriminatory and thus unconstitutional. before a National Committee headed by the the workplace and family environment,
State procedure/rules for redistribution were
prime minister faced opposition from some sometimes as sub-committees within
even more so. In one case, where a group members who found the absence of women's existing trade unions or joint fronts. Many
of peasant women challenged theirexclusion organisations' representatives inexplicable. groups at the grass roots level have directly
from getting title to redistributed land in theThe organisations in turn demanded a entered or sponsored income-generation
Rajasthan Canal Area in the Rajasthan High national debate before the document was activity, with SEWA heading the list as the
Court."t adopted.26 The same demand was echoed by most well known combination of the two.
The closing year of the Women's Decade a national seminarof women NGOs convened Even though women's participation in
marked aI high tide. A new government, by the Central Social Welfare Board. Since trade union activity anid involvement at
headed by Rajiv Gandhi, announced in the government seemed in no mood to do the level of decision-making still remains
January 1985 that women would receive this, the organisations took upon themselves abysmally low, over the last two decades
greater priority than bef'ore.24 The same year to proceed in the matter by holding a debate at least the problem has been highlighted

Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995 1875

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anld the class and gender bias marked out citizens. as mothers, wives, daulghters. astailures. At a genieral level it is estimated
t'or criticismli. women. the economic policies hit us the that two-thirds of the neo-literate learners
The critique of' macrio-policies basicallyhardest".2' as well as two-tlirds ol' the volunteers are
a(lopts tlhrece thrUsts: (a) that they would The overall impact of SAP has to he womenl [Governinent of India 199441. Thle
enhance rather than rediuce inequalities uinderstood in the context of the overbearing
impact ot the literacy movement came to he
ainong the people in genierail; (b) that this reality that already 94 per cent of the womenhighlightedl in the context of the anlti-arrack
wouldl make the conditioni of the majority workers are part of the informal sector and movement in Andhra Pradesh. However,
of women already strugglinig tor survival in that they constitute half the labour torce in another remarkablc achievement in recent
the intorinal sector still more vulnerable; the unorganised sector.)" What is the future years has been the process set in motion by
andl (c) they would contribute to the social lying ahead for women in an economy which the implementation of the 73rd and 74th
tiurhulence an(d violenicc, of wfiich women itself shall be struggling to find a space constitutional bodies which providc for 33
and childrein are the major victims. Critiques within the model of 'sustainable per cent representation tor women in local
have also concdemiined violence stemming development' under the aegis of a carefully bodies in rural and urban areas.
from the promotion of consumerist litestyles orchestrated Structural Adjustment Whereas observers rightly see in this a
through the mass media as such lifestyles Programme? qualitatively new dimension that has been
trap women into the stereotype of being added to the women's movement through
objects and subjects of consumerism [Bhasin CONCLUSION this development, the depth and complexities
anid Agarwal 1984]. It is important to note of these linkages are yet to he understood.
that the tew important concessions wrested The contemporary women's movement in In rural India, as also in the cities, it is the
from the government in the poverty India spans a large canvas. There are small new found articulation and confidence which
alleviation through economic development groups as well as large national level is coming into conflict with the consolidated
programmes provided some space for urban organisations. ' While some are recent having combine of conservative social forces which
poor and rural women to use the opportunities been formed only over the last two decades, draw strength from the regressive steps taken
made available to organise and articulate others go back to over 50 or even 100 years. by government as well as political
their demands. However, the macro-policies Some organisations focus on single issues representatives of reactionary forces. It is
remaining untouched and unchanged, while the mass organisations cover a vast the latter which are today preparing to mount
continued the processes of marginalisation. range. The organisational structure as well an onslaught through the political process
The issue facing the movement today is as activities undertaken differ. to check women's halting steps to advance
about the relevance of these debates and The movement has been fraught with and strengthen democracy in India.
tensions, rifts and differences, reflecting
eftorts. The earliercritique of macro-policies Movement politics, as it has developed in
was from a standpoinit of introducing a pro-differing notions of what are women's issues India, tends to show-up elements which arc
women approach within the given or how the movement should proceed to unclassifiable, Ideological ditferenices
parameters, using the constitutional focus on these. In comparison with the early exist - but within a conitiniuum - and tend to
guarantees as the basic reference point. years of the decade, today it is much easier get blurred when strategic choices have to
to come together. With an experience of
Today. Indian women feel that the structural be made between priorities. But the debates
adjustment programmes and the package of working together for over a decade and a continue and the questions persist. Is the
economic 'reforms' threaten not only earlier half women's groups in the country are movement's decentralised structure and
gains, but also the stated national goals by fairly well aware of the issues they agree on multiple arenas of interaction a point of
successive governments. While the and where they differ. However, neither the strength or weakness or both? Is the
movement was critiquing the development agreement nor should the differences be movement's 'excessive preoccupation' with
model, SAP has now removed the few seen as static or in a frozen time frame. the state's development policies and
regulatory/compensatory aspects of India's Whereas ideological differences remain and legislation 'welfarist' in its objective rather
mixed economy, leaving 'global market perspectives differ, the overall thrust is in than 'feminist' or 'radical"? Does the
forces' the sole players in the field. The favour of unity in action.)2 extension of the issue of violenlce against
processes, especially to those with The same attitude is reflected in the issues women from the domestic to the social and
inconvenient historical memories, bear being taken up. In the 1970s the movement political spheres indicate a backsliding or an
significant resemblance to what happened took off as part of an overall build up against advance? Or does it successfully combat the
to the Indian economy, and to women's role the authoritarian regime symbolised, dichotomy posed between 'economic
in the economy in particular. during the ironically, by a woman prime minister. It welfarism' and 'body politics'? Should the
colonial period [Krishnaraj 1988; Patnaik then got fragmented and even perhaps women's movement get involved with
1993; Krishnainurty 1989; Ghosh et al 1994; insulated. For a while even overtly political issues related to environment, population,
Mitra 1979]. statements were resisted. Today it is much child rights, globalisation/marketisation,
This realisation has imiade unity amongst easier to come together even on a platform international debt burden, all of which arise
difteriing organisations easier to achieve to denounce the economic and other policies from its widening base at the grass roots
today. In a joint statement women' s of the government. The 1990s represent a level or should it retain its autonomy wlile
organisations asserted: "We say no to Dunkel, trough in the political graph, where the need restricting its focus?
no to GArr, we oppose the unrestricted to join hands and build alliances with other Clearly, as it has developed, the focus
entry ot TNC's into the Indian economy". forces is even greater. could not be confined to the issue of
They argued that The women's movement has undoubtedly interpersonal relationships. The limits to
grown. Its outreach is far beyond the figures creating an essentialist, biological entity as
discussions on the impact of the new
of enrolled membership of organisations. well as identity of 'woman' have become
economic policies usually focus on the
These have now to take note of the increasing only too obvious. While the ideological
iml)act on the organised sector, since womcn
make up only a small percentage here it is
articulation of confidence by women at the outreach of 'feminine' identity politics has
assuined that the impact is minimal. We grass roots level. Nothing illustrates this widened, this spread has also demolished the
need to unitedly and forcefully correct thebetter than the response to the literacy fossilised image sought to be created. From
picture. In our multidimensional roles, as campaigns in several states where earlier different starting points, organisations have
workers, as peasants. as producers. as attempts to reach women had been abysmal moved towards a more holistic vision. As

1876 Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995

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the proto-fascist undertones of political
events/processes become clearer along with
the state's surreder to them, the need to join
hands is felt ever more deeply, lest we come
out with a cri de coeur -"we have the
movement but they (the other?) have the
women". While the movement is aware of
these challenges the strength of its grass
roots support base provides a ray of hope
that counter-actions and counter-ideologies
are not impossible.
Notes
[This paper, commissioned for a volume of
studies on the women's movement in different
countries, was written on the basis of a process
of wide-ranging inter-action in four regional
consultations to incorporate activists' own
perceptions of current challenges. It was not
included in the volume since the authors refused
to comply with large-scale revisions in the text;
deleting certain sections by the editor/
publishers/the agency funding the study. The
deletions included the introduction and
conclusion, the section on population policy as
well as large parts of the discussion on
communalisin/fundainentalism, on the grounds
of their not being "specific to the women's
movement in India". Instead new paragraphs/
pages were incorporated which contradicted
the views of the authors. The political context
in which women's struggle was being waged
in India was edited out altogether. Reports of
the consultations which provided the evidence
for our analysis shall be published shortly.
There is a wide difference in the age of the
two authors of this paper. However, both happen
to be students of history. What initially brought
us together was the contemporary women's
moveinent' s effort in India to bring out ajournal
12 For debate on 'voluntary' sati see Vaid, S and
in English. Vina Mazumdar was the first
publisher of Manushi and, Indu, a member of
its editorial collective. Our link with the
movement could be put very logistically - there
is perhaps not a single joint statement/docuinent
of the women's movemiient which may have
emanated from Delhi to which both or either
of us, individually or as part of sponsoring
women's organisations - the Centre for
Women's Development Studies anld the All
India Democratic Women's Association, have
not been signatories. Our doubts, dilemmas and
convictions in some way reflect the continuum
of consciousiness passed over from one
generation of Indian women to another.]
I A recent study, making note of Towards
Equality as a reference point, points out that (henceforth Bombay Consultation). Cf
as a "founding text" it is perhaps a good
measure of "the contrast between the Indian
movement and the movement in the US, which
often cited Betty Friedan's The Femininie 15 Plenary session, V National Conference on
Mystique as the book that set the women's Women's Studies (NCWS), Jadavpur, January
movement in that country going". See Tharu
and Lalitha, K (eds), 1994, Wonien Writinug
itn India, Vol 11, OUP, p 101.
2 The first such consultation was held in
Boinbay where activists from Maharashtra
and Gujarat participated. At a simnilar
sponsored programme of women's studies.
exercise in Calcutta, groups and See Criticcal Issues on the Status of Women,
organisations from West Bengal, Bihar 1977,
andICSSR.
18 SEWA Ahmedabad, the Working Women's
Orissa came together. The third consultation
Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995 1877
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in Delhi brought together activists from the Forum, Madras, the Annapurna Mahila
northern and central region and the southern Mandal, Bombay, etc.
region activists met in Hyderabad in 19 The general election of 1977 removed the
November. Reports of these consultations government led by Indira Gandhi, for the
shall be published within the year. excesses of her rule during the emergency and
3 'Open Letterto the Chief Jusfice of India, 1979', a non-Congress government came to power
Supreme Court Joumral, 1979, 4, pp 19-22. at the centre for the first time.
4 The comment on the committee achieving 20 Critical Issues on the Status of Women, op cit.
21 The demand for Joint pattas was earlier made
solidarity despite party-based differences was
made by Susheela Gopalan, MP, and general by peasant women in two officially sponsored
secretay of AIDWA. meetings in West Bengal: State Conjerence
5 'Perspectives from the Women's Movement: on Women and Developtment, Calcutta, 1979
Health and Population'in Some Issues in the and Orientation C6ampforSeasonallyMigrant
Women Labourers, Jhilimili, Bankura, 1980.
Struggle for Women's Equality, 1994
(henceforth, Some Issues); a joint document It is ironical that the demand which brought
published by the Delhi Network of Six on the movement the charge of 'trying to
National Women's Organisations, pp 10- 17. break up the family', was ardently advocated
6 Joitit Memorandum to Swanminathant by three representatives of the Government
Coinmittee by 12 Women's Organisations, of India in 1992 at a conference on Peasant
November 12, 1993 (unpublished). Women and Environmeent of' India,
7 Open Letter to Swaminathan Committee. Cf Bangladesh, Nepal and Pakistan. See Report
Indiani Expreess, July 9, 1994, and The Pioneer, of' the Lahore Conference 1992, Aurat
July 11, 1994. Foundation and Unifem; also Mazumdar V,
8 Cf Resolution adopted in meeting to plan Embracitng the Earth: An Agenda forPartner-
Joint Action against Criminalisation of Politics ship witih Peasant Woment; 1994, UN FAO.
and Sexual Abuse of Women, Delhi, October 22 Vina Mazumdar to Lotika Sarkar, M-6/80,
22, 1994 (unpublished). September 12, 1980, CWDS files, and
9 A common custom among peasant Vina Mazumdar to Ashok Mitra, M-6/80,
communities, ainmed at preventing partition October 1, 1980, CWDS files.
of property by making a widow marry her 23 Chairteron Employment, March 8, 1983. Also,
brother-in-law. Appeal to NAM Summit, New Delhi, 1983,
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Patel, The Timevs of India, Research decisions on women - see Thie Non-Aligned
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I I .anasatta, editorial, September 18, 1987, 1983. Also Tomsic, Vida - 4th J P Naik
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The Illustrated Weekly, January 17, 1988, 24 President's Address to the newly elected (in
pp 20-23. December 1984) parliamiient at its opening
session, January 1985.
Sangari, K, 'Institutions, Beliefs, Ideologies: 25 Nirmala Banerjee, See Report of Calcutta
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Rajasthan', Economic and Political Weekly, 26 Joint Press Statement by National Womsen's
Vol XXVI, No 17, April 27, WS 2-18. Also Organisations, July 6, 1988, Also Nationcal
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14 These points einerged from a discussion on 27 Naitionail Debate, 1988, op cit.
Fundamentalism and Violence during the 28 The memoranduin submitted to the president
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independence is of prime importance if women
organised jointly by the Centre for Women's
Developmnent Studies (CWDS) and the are to achieve equality and lead a life of
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ment continuing to view women as
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1994.
31 Some of these may even have a membership
going up to a few million: AIDWA -'3.
million. NFIW, I million, YWCA 15S,000.
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1 878 Economic and Political Weekly July 22, 1995

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