Violence Against Women
Violence against women is an act of gender-based violence that results in or is
likely to result in physical, sexual, or psychological harm or suffering to women.
It also includes threats, coercion, or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether
occurring in public or private life.
In India Violence against women is not a series of isolated incidents, but a
pervasive, systemic crisis embedded in the nation’s social, cultural, and
institutional fabric.
Arenas of Violence
The violence begins even before birth with female foeticide and infanticide,
driven by a cultural preference for male children.
Beyond birth, the home idealized as a sanctuary becomes a battlefield,
underscoring the normalization of violence within intimate relationships.
Domestic violence is often justified as a husband’s right to discipline his wife,
with survivors silenced by stigma and threats.
Dowry-related violence masked as kitchen accidents or suicides, while marital
rape reinforces the notion of a wife as property.
In public spaces, streets, public transport, and educational institutions turn into
zones of fear, with sexual harassment and rape rampant.
The digital realm introduces new threats—cyberstalking and deepfake pictures
humiliate and silence women.
Workplaces despite laws like the Prevention of Sexual Harassment Act, remain
hostile, with sexual harassment, pay gaps, and the burden of caregiving
thwarting women’s ambitions, Informal sector workers face additional
vulnerabilities.
Intersectional Violence
Violence against women is not uniform, it is magnified for those at the
intersections of caste, class, and economic disadvantage.
Marginalized and underrepresented women endure a dual burden of gender and
caste-based discrimination.
Sexual violence against Dalit women, often perpetrated with impunity make
them vulnerable targets especially in rural areas where caste hierarchies are
rigid.
Economic violence further entraps marginalized women, with financial
dependence and lack of property rights leaving them powerless.
Widows and single women face additional stigma and abuse, often excluded from
resources and social support.
Cultural Underpinnings
Indian culture venerates women as mothers and wives, yet this reverence comes
with a price—subjugation.
The concept of pativrata (wifely devotion) glorifies a woman’s chastity and
fidelity, tying her identity to her husband.
Chastity and fidelity become the highest expression of selfhood and salvation,
reinforcing a women’s role as a passive upholder of patriarchal order.
The Karta or male head of the family, is tasked with women’s protection,
rendering the autonomy outside the home taboo.
This idealization fuels practices like sati (historically sanctioned widow
immolation) and modern dowry deaths, where brides are burned or abandoned if
dowry demands falter.
Institutional Failures
Despite legislative efforts—the Domestic Violence Act, Prevention of Sexual
Harassment Act, and Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act
implementation remains weak.
One Stop Centers (OSCs), intended as havens offering medical, legal, and
psychological support, are underfunded and understaffed, limiting their reach.
The judiciary’s delays and police apathy, discourage reporting, while victim-
blaming shifts the burden onto survivors.
The informal sector workers lack access to complaint mechanisms like Local
Committees,
( LC ) which are often dysfunctional.
The Crime Against Women (CAW) Cell offers counselling and FIR filing, yet its
urban focus leaves rural women stranded.
Nari Adalats (women’s courts) offer a grassroots alternative, adjudicating
disputes in rural areas, but their informal nature limits enforceability
The Way Forward
While laws exist, their enforcement needs to be strengthened. This includes fast-
tracking cases of violence against women, ensuring accountability of law
enforcement agencies, and providing support systems like legal aid and
counselling for survivors.
The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, launched on the
International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women should evolve
into a nationwide initiative, synergizing ministries and state entities to dismantle
gender-based violence.
There is a need to empower women through financial independence, via
workforce participation, property rights, and policies supporting informal workers
like registration, unions, and benefits.
Preventing violence requires male allies, active bystander intervention, and
collective action with community-led efforts.
Need to Strengthen One-Stop Centers (OSCs) and Nari Adalats through state
funding, staff, and awareness, alongside health systems offering trauma-
informed care.
School-based programmes should address gender norms and attitudes before
they become deeply ingrained in children and youth and a period of obligatory
community and social work should be introduced to prepare them for future
The Smart Cities Mission should drive the creation of safer, gender-friendly
infrastructure and spaces to prevent gender-based violence,
Paternity leave should become as common as maternity leave and employers
should get used to the idea that men also have responsibilities at home.
