#KnowYourRights: Laws That Protect Women And Their Rights!

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Women in our country are advised at almost every 5th second of their life. Be it your family, your friends, or your partner, each one of them think the crime in our country is rising due to lack of knowledge. Wear a long dress, don’t be late, don’t walk alone, etc. are some of the statements that you get to hear daily.

Consequence? A rift is created between you and your loved ones.

So, what do we do? What steps do we need to take?

Firstly, we need to recognise that crimes against women are committed every minute in our country. For the better safety of women, the government needs to ensure better laws and even better execution. On the other hand, the empowered women of our country need to know the basic and important laws, so that they don’t have to feel overwhelmed or suppressed ever again. These laws will ensure you have enough power to take your stand in any situation.

Without further ado, let’s get started.

1: Special Marriage Act, 1954

Marriage and Divorce have been one of the major areas where women are suppressed either because they are not vocal enough, or they don’t have the necessary knowledge. A special form of marriage registration or divorce is provided under the Special Marriage Act, 1954. People from different faiths, casts can get married, given that they are of legal age.

2: Right to free legal aid

We often complain that no actions are taken for the harassed ones, and even their voice is subdued sometimes. However, you might not be aware that when a woman is either humiliated, ignored for a statement, she has all the right to demand free legal aid. Under Section-12 of the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987, you have been given the right to get free legal help and to be treated with the utmost attention.

3: Right against Harassment at Work

This might be one of the least known rights yet a crucial one for any working women in our country. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013, seeks the protection of women at their workplace. It also includes prevention for the same and looks after the complaints of sexual harassment.

4: Right to get Maternity Benefits

Having your Maternity Benefits is a right given to you by the Government of India. Under the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961, any new mother is allowed to re-join her work in full flow after 12 weeks of her delivery, ensuring she doesn’t suffer any loss in her income. The Act entitles a woman to receive benefits like maternity leave, regular check-ups, medical allowances, etc. given she has worked in the organisation for a total of 80 days in the last 12 months, before her expected date of delivery.

5: Right against Domestic Violence

Be it the family of the Groom or the family of the Bride, they all advise you to keep your private matters behind closed doors, no matter how serious they get. This happens in most of the cases which results in cases of domestic violence all over the country. Every woman in our country, be it a wife, a mother, a sister, or a live-in partner has been given protection under the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005, against the violence of any kind at the hands of a male or the relatives.

6: Right to Equal Pay

Women in our country are not just harassed physically, but mentally too. We all talk about empowerment, but when it comes to equal wage rate and equal work opportunities, we don’t have enough institutions for the same. The provisions made under Section-4 of the Equal Remuneration Act, 1976 directs an employer to pay the same wages for the same work.

7: Right to No Arrest

Under the Section-46 of Civil Procedure Code of India, 1973, no woman can be arrested after 6 PM and before 6 AM, even if an arrest warrant has been issued against the same person.

8: Right to Privacy

According to the Section-164 of the Criminal Procedure Code, any rape surviving woman has the right to give her statement in private in front of the magistrate. If she demands her privacy, no other official, or person will be allowed to hear her statement.

9: Right to Virtual Complaints

To bring more people to Justice, Delhi Police allowed women to lodge complaints online, that too without an FIR. Any woman is allowed to complain through e-mail or registered post to a Deputy Commissioner or Commissioner of Police. Proper Investigation and verification of the case are then carried out by the concerned area Police station. When found legitimate, the police then reach out to the victim for a statement.

10: Right to Anonymity

Due to the pressure build-up by the members of the family, not many women come out for justice, just to maintain the “dignity” of the family in society. However, Section- 228 (A) of the Indian Penal Code allows a sexually assaulted/harassed women to remain anonymous when her case is in the trial. She can give a private statement in front of the magistrate alone or the presence of a lady officer.

These were ten laws that all women need to know to protect themselves and their rights. However, there are many more laws that one should know to get fast-paced justice. On the other hand, we need a system that gives justice right in time. Remember, Justice Delayed is Justice Denied. Any change starts from the roots; this can be one change that you can bring into society by increasing awareness.

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I was walking down the main road in a tier 3 city along with my friend when two men on a bike rushed against us, turned again and almost pulled my friend’s dupatta — though we managed to save her, we couldn’t get a hold of those men. We froze for almost a minute before grasping everything that happened with us.

It’s been a decade since that incident, and I still look out for bikes and stay aware while walking such roads.

My cousin had to board an overcrowded bus once only to face off a stinking drunk man who was ‘just’ trying to tell her how beautiful she was. Apparently, she almost stopped using public buses.

My colleague always books two adjacent seats in shared autos because she has met a lot of men who, unfortunately, have not been taught how to adjust in their own seat and not to ‘almost’ fall on other women’s lap.

That was neither the first time nor the last time when such an incident happened with my friend, cousin or colleague.

I was in standard seven, eight or nine — I do not remember exactly — a middle-aged man groped me while I was walking to my school. And before I could react, shout and or even notice his face again, he was already out of my sight. That was one of the longest ten minutes walks I’ve ever had.

From blank calls to abusive calls, creepy stares, random terrible gropings, unwanted chases, etc.; the list is long and haunting.

And, it’s not only me who has experienced it. There is a minimum of hundreds of such incidents happening every day — while you may generalise the level of insolence, one can never justify the trauma it brings!

The sad part is that almost 99% of cases of sexual assaults go unreported — sad and dark, isn’t it?

sexual abuse india data — Source: Livemint

And when I say sexual abuse, it is not limited to what you are trying to shred off. Physical abuse, mental abuse, verbal abuse, digital abuse, etc. are just the various forms of the torments that it brings.

Where and what is the problem they ask. Is it the mentality or rage or a compulsive mechanism to overpower another’s will or just an amusement? The reason is never annotated, never justified.

The only justification I’ve ever got is the over-liberation of femininity in the name of equality!!

Of course, they sound accurate. How can we compete against the species who have the god-given power to make us pregnant and ensure that the kids turn out to be straight! How can we have the audacity to walk in that sacred place where they go every day to earn the currency and be better than them!

Isn’t that too hard and cruel, I ask ladies! Every deed of theirs is a reminder to us — that we must not use our basic rights and sit back under the boundaries that they call house.

Sometimes, I feel that I, or maybe a lot of women, like me have passed that very stage of toleration, have crossed their threshold and have fought enough to question the people and society they belong to — maybe, we now know, or rather, have accepted that ‘this’ is not going to change — no matter how hard we fight or raise our voice.

This whole ‘do not question my patriarchal rights or else I’d harm your self-esteem and dignity’ have reached a new level — a level of fake male ego, the art of hiding inability under the trousers and the unstoppable show-off of muscles.

So yes, while I hold placards and roam around the city, a part of me knows that it’s not possible to change 1.38 billion minds against the same perception — it’s not possible to convince them that we live in a metropolitan era which does not distinguish between gender, caste, creed and sexuality.

And while I move on to document another horrific experience, I challenge every woman out there to tell our readers if she has not been abused at any age, place or time.
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