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| Dr Ambedkar and His Contribution to Women's Rights in India | | "I measure the progress of a community by the degree of progress which women have achieved." Dr. B.R. Ambedkar | | Sunita Bangotra | 4/13/2020 10:42:08 PM |
| Dr. B. R. Ambedkar was a born rebel and a fighter of causes. One of the sacred missions of his life was the reform of Hindu society in general and the liberation of the lot of his untouchable brethren in particular, and he's widely regarded as the champion of that cause. However, there's another cause for which he fought vehemently which a lot of people are not aware of, and that was Women Empowerment through legislative reforms.
In the Indian man-dominated society, women faced terrific problems since vedic period due to superstitions and misguided rituals. The women have been victimised through different ways, like-child marriage, sati pratha, parda pratha, restriction to widow remarriage, widow's exploitation, devadasi system etc. So, incidentally taking birth as woman had been treated as a curse for the woman. During British rule in India and after independence Dr. B.R. Ambedkar fought for the rights of women and made such provisions in constitution of India so that women must be treated equally in the society. The provision of equality to women made for all streams whether it is education, employment, social and economic rights. It is due to Dr. Ambedkar's legislative reforms that today women can be self dependent. Though Dr. Ambedkar's passion to reform the Hindu society by empowering women is perhaps best brought out in his crusade to pass the Hindu Code Bill in the parliament.
The Hindu Code Bill was the most controversial Bill, and perhaps the greatest piece of legislation, considered by the Provisional Parliament. The Hindu Code Bill is nothing but a declaration of women's rights. It was introduced by Dr. B.R. Ambedkar in the Constituent Assembly on 11th April, 1947. The property including both movable and immovable property should be acquired by a woman. The acquisition of property should be made by a woman before and after marriage even during the widowhood from her parents or husband. Dowry system would be paid as a condition and consideration. The share of the property of each unmarried daughter shall be half that of each son and the share of each married daughter shall be one quarter of that of each son. His Hindu Code Bill covered with the i) right to property, ii) order of succession to the property, iii) maintenance, marriage, divorce adoption, minority and guardianship.
The Bill was moved for referring to the Select Committee on 9th April, 1948. The parliamentary debates continued for more than 4 years. This was the first longest discussion on any single Bill in the free India's Parliament. Dr. Ambedkar felt that the Government. i.e. the Congress were not no eager to clear the Hindu Code. The Bill challenged the base of patriarchy and awarded women the equal position as of men. Hence, the bill was against the structure of domination and suppression of women and, by way of this, challenged the very philosophy of Hinduism. The orthodox Hindu and the President of the Constituent Assembly Dr. Rajendra Prasad was against the Bill. Anathasayanam Ayyangar, the speaker of the Constituent Assembly was also against this Hindu Code Bill.
To make his resentment clear to the government, he tendered his resignation as the Law Minister to PM Nehru in 1951. In his explanation for his resignation, he cited "In the opinion of some it may be wrong for me to have held on for the sake of the Hindu Code. I took a different view. The Hindu Code was the greatest social reform measure ever undertaken by the Legislature in this country. No law passed by the Indian Legislature in the past or likely to be passed in the future can be compared to it in point of its significance. To leave inequality between class and class, between sex and sex which is the soul of Hindu Society untouched and to go on passing legislation relating to economic problems is to make a farce of our Constitution and to build a palace on a dung heap. This is the significance I attached to the Hindu Code."
Dr. Ambedkar was a great protagonist of Hindu Code Bill but his identity of being an untouchable was a problem which created retardations in his way to reform Hindu law. As it is evident from the statement of Jereshastri who said, in an indecent language, "that Ganges water from a gutter cannot be considered holy". Some members openly declared that as long as Dr Ambedkar was piloting the Bill, they would not allow it to pass. It is apparent from the fact that when the bill was split into 4 separate bills post India's first general election in 1951-52, it was met with much less opposition. These 4 separate bills included - the Hindu Marriage Act, the Hindu Succession Act, the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, and the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act - which were effectively introduced and passed in the parliament between the years 1952 and 1956.
Dr. Ambedkar's ideas influenced the enactment of many subsequent pro-women Acts viz. Sati Prevention Act, 1987, Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961, the Family Courts Act, 1984, Protection of Human Right Act, 1993, The Maternity Benefit Act 1961, Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956, The Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929, The Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, The National Commission for Women Act, 1990, Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, to cite a few.
It is not easy to eradicate deep-seated cultural value, or alter tradition that perpetuates discrimination. Babasaheb Dr. B.R. Ambedkar gave his whole life for the betterment, rights and justice to underprivileged sections of society. Due to his reforms, women got their independence and learnt to live with honour and pride. It is due to the efforts and contribution of Babasaheb that women are self-dependent today and government has initiated many schemes and implemented many laws for the empowerment of women in Indian society. In the condolence message (on Dr. Ambedkar's death) in parliament, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru rightly said "Babasaheb Dr. Ambedkar was a symbol of revolt against all oppressive features of Hindu society". His dream of an equal society lives on.
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