National
Women hold 'court,' pronounce state 'guilty'
By Kalpana Sharma
LUCKNOW, DEC. 11. Over two thousand women from all parts of Uttar Pradesh gathered in the freezing weather in an open ground here on December 10 - Human Rights Day. They came to participate in a `Jan Adalat' (People's Court) on violence against women. Over a dozen of them testified in public. They spoke of dowry abuse, torture, rape and caste atrocities. And all of them emphasised the inaction of police and the State.
The women who testified included the 68-year-old Kareshani Devi from Nathmalpur village in Saharanpur district. She was raped by a 27-year-old man who stifled her and forced her at knife point. Kamala, daughter of the 51-year-old Dalit, Tejania, narrated the experience of her mother who belonged to Hasanpur village in Fatehpur district. Tejania was beaten to death for complaining against a Thakur who assaulted her children. Her 11-year-old grand-daughter, working in the fields with her, was also killed. The Thakur then proceeded to their home and beat to death Tejania's 32-year-old daughter-in-law and her two young children.
These stories illustrate the National Crimes Records Bureau statistics which placed Uttar Pradesh first in 1998 for crimes against women, including rape, kidnapping, dowry deaths, mental and physical torture, molestation, sexual harassment and trafficking.
The `Jan Adalat' was the culmination of the year-long campaign, Hisaab, - Hinsa sahna band (Stop Tolerating Violence) - by a network of women's groups who have come together under the common banner of the Women's Association for Mobilisation and Action. Ms. Huma Khan of WAMA said in the last 10 years, caste and communal divisions had increased in Uttar Pradesh. And women had borne the brunt of the violent outcome.
The State's response to the increasing and documented evidence of violence against women was far from satisfactory. Ms. Khan cited the instance of women police stations that had been put up in 13 districts. Instead of helping women, they were more bureaucratic as they had no clear jurisdiction.
The members of WAMA also pointed out that while the Uttar Pradesh Government had supported the Centre's Prevention Of Terrorism Ordinance, it refused to endorse the proposed legislation on domestic violence. Given that the majority of crimes against women took place within the home, this was a clear indication of its lack of seriousness.
Indeed, despite the impressive gathering of over 2000 women, not one member of the Government took the time to attend the function. And when a representative group from the meeting went in the evening to meet the Chief Minister, Mr. Rajnath Singh, he could not spare time to talk to the women despite promising earlier to do so.
The Supreme Court advocate, Ms. Indira Jaisingh, one of the ``judges'' at the `Adalat,' spoke strongly against police and the judiciary for not responding to women's issues. ``We pay judges their salaries through our taxes. Their job is to give justice. But if they are not doing their job, if they don't give justice, then they must go. The days when we sat back quietly are over. Now we say, give us justice or leave your chairs.''
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