LAW AND GENDER INEQUALITY – THE POLITICS OF WOMEN RIGHTS IN INDIA

CLASS – FYBA B
SUBJECT: ( SOCIOLOGY – I )

NAME AND ROLL NUMBER – B-014: Dhruvi Dedhia

B-020: Anvi Doshi
B-047: Arhata Mehta
B-048: Dhyana Mehta
B-068: Itiksha Sawant
B-096: Hiya Shah

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SR NO. TOPIC PAGE NO.

1. Information 3

2. Brief Summary of the 4-5

Author

3. Book and its Chapters 5-8

4. Target Audience 8-9

5. Style of Writing 9

6. Strengths and Limitations 9-10

7. Conclusion 10

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NAME OF THE BOOK : Law And Gender Inequality ( The Politics Of Women’s Right In
India )
AUTHOR : Flavia Agnes
YEAR : 2001
PLACE OF PUBLICATION : INDIA
NAME OF THE PUBLISHER: Oxford University Press
PAGES : 268

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A BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE AUTHOR:(Dhruvi Dedhia: B-014)
Flavia Agnes was nurtured by her maternal aunt in Mangalore after being born in Bombay at
the dawn of independence to Mangalorean parents. Her aunt's tragic death on the eve of her
SSC Exams was the first tragedy to occur. Her father passed suddenly a few months
afterwards. She finished her studies and moved to Aden, Yemen, where she worked as a
typist, where she lived with her mother and sisters. The family was forced to leave Yemen
due to political unrest in 1967 and return to Mangalore. Even though she was just 20 years
old, her older and younger sisters had already tied the knot at that point. The planned union
with a very successful CEO quickly descended into violence. She wanted it to end once it hit
her like a cyclone, but she quickly realised there was no way out. She claims that as the rope
around her neck tightened with each pregnancy, "the Church authorities and the community
looked the other way" while she reared her three children in the shadow of violence. She was,
nevertheless, adamant about ending this cycle of violence. In 1980, on her quest for
independence, she stumbled into Mumbai's infant women's movement. She had the fortitude
to leave the marriage with the help of a few friends, but it was a difficult process. She fought
bravely and tenaciously, and at age 40 she finally attained the status of women's rights
attorney. Since Christian women stuck in abusive marriages were not allowed to divorce, she
applied for judicial separation but quickly withdrew it because the case was going nowhere.
She was adamant about starting a movement to aid domestic abuse victims and elicit practical
solutions. She continued her schooling, and in 1988 she graduated with a law degree. Later,
she earned an M.PHIL from the National Law School in Bangalore after completing her
LL.M. This allowed her to fulfil her lifelong ambition to work as a feminist legal researcher.
She had changed from being a well-known women's rights attorney to a victim of domestic
abuse. Flavia, who is hailed as a pioneer of the women's movement in India, has contributed
significantly to contextualising gender and identity issues as well as advancing women's
rights inside the legal system. She co-founded Majlis, a legal and cultural resource centre, in
1990. Majlis' main goal was to give disadvantaged and marginalised women access to justice.
Majlis is Arabic for "assembly" or "gathering." Over 50,000 women of all classes and
religions have received legal assistance from the all-female team of attorneys and support
staff since it was founded. The Majlis' operations include crucial elements such educating the
public, training the police and courts, and spreading awareness in schools, universities, and
the community. After the racial unrest in Mumbai in 1992, the organisation added secularism
and minority issues to its list of primary objectives. Her works offer sharp critique of
domestic abuse, minority rights, secularism, and human rights. She is a prolific writer. Her
compelling autobiographical book, "My Story Our Story...Of Rebuilding Broken Lives,"
which has been translated into various Indian languages, is noteworthy among her many
works since it is an uplifting story. She has won several honours for her own battle against
domestic abuse and her unshakable dedication to turning survivors into joyful people. The
first Neerja Bhanot Award for individual bravery was given to her. She also received the
Rachana Award from the Mangalore Chamber of Commerce in 2011, the 11th Annual
Kelvinator Gr8 Women Awards in 2012, the Zee Marathi 'Unch Maza Zoka' Award in 2014,
and the India Today Woman Summit Award in 2017. She claims it was a very significant
occasion for her when St. Agnes College, Mangalore, welcomed her as a Special Guest for
their centennial celebrations. She feels most satisfied when she succeeds in a difficult legal
matter on behalf of a victim of violence and develops a persuasive body of case law. She
observes with regret in her voice that Catholic women have been involved in some of the

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most violent situations she has seen. Flavia Agnes' work on law and gender injustice ties
together several perspectives into a cohesive whole. Since the early 1980s, the author has
worked in the field of women and law, beginning with the second phase of the Indian
women's movement, and has written extensively on the workings of Indian law - on the
ground, in the courts, and in the legislature. The current work combines these three
perspectives and adds a fourth: historical. (Dhruvi Dedhia B-014)
BOOK AND ITS CHAPTER: (Arhata Mehta: B-047 and Anvi Doshi: B-020)
The book1 has four sections in addition to an introduction, a conclusion, and three
appendices . The book follows two trajectories in the family law debate: changes in
personal/religious family laws and advancements in discussions about ideal civil code(s) .
Both are treated with historical interest from pre-colonial , colonial , through post-
independence legal history , three parts on Hindu , Muslim , Parsi, and Christian family law ,
and the last section on the need for one or more ideal civil codes .
PART ONE: (Arhata Mehta: B-047 ) The pre-colonial and colonial legal systems are
covered in part one. The study described here seeks to give a framework for reformulating the
call for gender equality. The undercurrent that exists behind the rhetoric of women's rights,
property, and its control within feudal and capitalistic patriarchal frameworks is among them.
The author investigates whether women can negotiate spaces within Hindu and Muslim
religious law and customary practises within the constrained sphere of patriarchal norms to
protect their economic rights. She also investigates whether statutory interventions during
colonial and post-colonial periods have contributed to the expansion of this constrained
sphere. The author emphasises that despite their alleged divine origin, the Smritis were based
on long-standing local customs. Additionally, despite the fact that the religious texts contain a
number of favourable provisions that would protect women's rights, these provisions were
later subverted by later patriarchal societies and sociocultural factors. The pre-independence
era saw a severe decline in the status of women as colonial authority and brahminization
created distortions that ushered in a harsh patriarchal system. The author contends that there
were areas for discussing women's rights and that custom and interpretations were not always
antagonistic to women. She was unable to bargain for her rights, nevertheless, in the social
setting. The author also demonstrates how the overexposure of a religion's harmful elements
has resulted in its marginalisation. For instance, the author cites Manu, who commands the
husband to give his wife a third of his property in the case of a second marriage.6 This
command from Manu may still be used as a standard by the justice in the year 2001. The
author discusses the ongoing conflict between Smriti rules and patriarchal subversions inside
the family when talking about the rights of women in respect to joint property. The author
mentions that Mitakshara provided for separate succession to stridhana but omits to mention
that in three of the four Mitakshara schools, certain females (the father's wife, mother, and
paternal grandmother) were entitled to receive a share of the joint family property in the
event of a division. She may even file a lawsuit for her portion if no share was given to them
after the partition. In addition, they argued for giving her a piece of the family's property
while still respecting the rights of their daughters or sisters. When a division is made amongst
brothers following the death of the father, Mitakshara permits for portions to be given to the
sisters. According to Vijnaneshwara, daughters in the household must be given a portion.
"The allocation of such a part appears to be unavoidably necessary," he continues, "because
the refusal of it is declared to be a sin." Madhaviya and Katayana also let a father to give his

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daughters moveable property. To the unmarried daughters of the same mother, Manu says, let
their brothers contribute parts from their allotments in accordance with the various classes of
their various mothers. Everyone should contribute onefourth of their own portion, and those
who refuse to do so will be treated less favourably. These and related writings show that
Hindu law scriptures not only approve of giving daughters property at the time of the division
or at the moment of their marriage, but they also vehemently denounce the breach of that
obligation. Since this was unquestionably the area the author was researching, it was
important that she mention it. The author notes that women had better treatment in southern
states. According to her, a comparison of northern and southern practises reveals lesser status
and rigorous control in the northern area and a greater status in the southern region. The
lesser position of women among north Indian higher castes was indicated by the doctrine of
kshatra and beeja (soil and the seed), which symbolised that a woman is always the carrier of
the offspring who genuinely belonged to the male. However, in the case of patriarchal
households in the southern states, this discovery seems puzzling. Only the Dravida school,
which was popular in south India, did not grant a portion to women at the time of division
among the groups controlled by the Mitakshara, which was divided into four sub-schools.
The author's observation13 that, according to Muslim law, a woman's portion is one-half that
of her male counterpart because of his obligations or burdens has to be changed once again.
Women and several other relations were not entitled to a stake in the property under pre-
Quranic regulations. They were initially described in the Quran as portions of the departed
relative's possessions. The regulation stated that the newly introduced heir would receive half
of the shares of the pre-existing heirs rather than each man taking the equivalent of two
females standing in the same degree of proximity. As a result, the sister's share was equal to
half that of the brother's since the Quran introduced the sister as a sharer whereas the brother
was already a recognised heir prior to the Quran's revelation. . Similar to how the uterine
brother and sister's shares were equal in relation to one another because the Quran had
introduced both of them. (Arhata Mehta: B-047)
PART TWO: (Arhata Mehta: B-047 )The post-independence developments are covered in
Part II. While codification has given Hindu women some benefits by allowing them the right
to full property ownership, the author notes14 that monogamy and the freedom to divorce are
more theoretical than practical rights. The general omission of anti-fragmentation regulations
from the general Hindu Succession Act, 1956 as well as Section 23 of the HSA, which
support her position, should have been mentioned by the author. The entire chapter
demonstrates15 how the Muslim Women's Act and the Babri Masjid were utilised as political
ploys to win over the Muslim vote when the Congress party lost several states. As a result,
women's rights were compromised. The MWA was passed in response to the controversy
surrounding the Adoption Bill and the failed attempts to maintain married Muslim women
with minimal sums of money. The author also demonstrates how the country, especially those
who have women's interests at heart, is effectively misled by the media's selective reporting
of a verdict. Justice Tilhari's ruling serves as an illustration of how easily they might fall
victim to inaccurate reports. Contrary to what is generally accepted, this ruling has done more
harm than benefit to the interests of women. A woman's right to autonomously own and own
property is undermined by the judiciary's finding that her husband automatically owns all of
her possessions. The demand, which was intended to be a symbol of India's claim to
modernity, turned into a weapon in the hands of regressive and sectarian forces to beat down
minorities, the author observes18 in regard to the unified civil code. Her view shows that

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majorities are unduly authoritarian and minorities lack a community mindset. It also suggests
that there hasn't been a serious discussion of the subject. A lesser known and even less widely
publicised fact is that even the majority community does not want to see the idea of UCC
become a reality. This is in addition to the Muslim community representatives' rigid stance
and their steadfast opposition to even allowing non-Muslims to interpret any of the Quran's
verses. The notion of a joint family, which has no equivalent in any other society in the
world, should have been examined by the author in this passage. If uniformity was desired,
would they be willing to give it up, or would they prefer to impose this foreign idea on all the
other communities in India? It is necessary to attain uniformity not only in the field of
marriage laws but also in the area of property laws. The author also demonstrates19 how the
rising hostility between the Muslim and Hindu communities within the national movement
made it impossible to develop a set of universal family rules and how all items pertaining to
private affairs were being referred to as religious rather than customary. Despite the fact that
state laws were referred to as religious laws. (Arhata Mehta: B-047)
PART THREE: (Arhata Mehta: B-047 )Part III explores the political issues that surround
Parsi and Christian reforms among non-Muslim minority. The author notes that despite the
Parsi community's efforts to keep their reforms on par with more widespread societal changes
. Christian statutes remain antiquated and superfluous. The book also demonstrates that the
government only pays attention to calls for change when they originate from men in the
community. Despite Jyotsna Chatterjee's efforts, the government did not care to take any calls
for change into consideration. It reveals the community's preparedness and willingness but
also the subsequent governments' lack of political will, which led to the impasse. The dual
method that applies to the Christian community under section 7 of the IDA24 is completely
wrong, as the author demonstrates with the aid of two judgements, and it has to be changed. It
is perplexing in and of itself that Section 7 even exists in IDA. On paper, the Law mandates
that while resolving issues under the IDA as of 2001, the Indian courts adhere to the rules and
procedures of the English marital courts. 25 The Madras High Court's entire bench ruled in
1995 that even after India became a republic, it must abide by the rules and laws imposed by
its colonial rulers, which were in effect in England not only at the time of gaining
independence but also beyond. A special bench of the Madras High Court27 repealed this
decision in 1970, and they did it appropriately. Additionally, the fact that the weddings are
both solemnised by the churches and recorded with the registrar of births and deaths presents
problems with the dual method itself. As a result, the deal is now a civil contract that can only
be terminated by civil courts. Since most Christians do not know that a marriage may only be
dissolved by a court, the author makes the point that any divorce given to them by the
Ecclesiastical Tribunal does not provide them the right to remarry. The author mentions a
case28 where a married lady obtained a divorce from an ecclesiastical tribunal and then got
married again without realising that the divorce was not legally binding. Her second husband
afterwards filed a lawsuit against her for the annulment of the second marriage on this
identical premise, which the court approved. Her second husband knew about her previous
marriage and the fact that it had been dissolved. In light of this case, the author contends that
because women have a lower level of literacy and access to the legal system, the court has an
additional duty to uphold their rights. According to the author, the woman's lone mistake
appears to be her lack of understanding of the convoluted and antiquated legislation that rules
her daily activities. But in this instance, the court had no choice but to make the decision it
did. The fact that the woman was married at the time of her second marriage persists even if

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the tribunal's annulment is invalid. Her lack of legal knowledge may be important when the
court must punish her for bigamy, but it would not be important when determining whether
her second marriage is genuine. Although the husband's knowledge is material, it is still
unclear whether he was aware of the tribunal's annulment's ineffectiveness at the time of his
marriage or learned of it later. He most likely learned of this at the request of his attorney
when they were looking into potential grounds for him to end the marriage. (Arhata Mehta:
B-047)
PART FOUR: (Anvi Doshi: B-020)
Because of two directly at odds constitutional guarantees—minority rights and gender
equality—current discussions, which include the UCC, have led to a deadlock in politics. The
author reviews the existing draughts, including the one created by the Bar Council of India's
1986 national convention on an universal civil code. In order to stop the trend of destitution
and the consequent impoverishment of women, the concluding chapter summarises the
alternative options being investigated by legal academia, women's groups, official forums, as
well as Muslim intelligentsia. It then suggests tentative options for strengthening women's
economic rights. The author demonstrates how the universal civil code's original intent was
to provide equality for all Indian women, but that focus gradually shifted to national
integration with only passing allusions to gender equity. Considering that women's welfare
has historically been the cornerstone of social change, political gamesmanship at each level
of reforms has led to the trade-off of essential women's economic rights. That is what the
author says. The author also demonstrates how marriage is the main institution for managing
property connections in addition to controlling women's sexuality and married conjugality.
Economic rights that result from a married partnership under Indian matrimonial statutes are
now specified by antiquated rules that date back to an agricultural feudal civilization and
must be changed. The author highlights the accomplishments of women's groups' efforts
around dowry and rape laws as well as the lack of an ongoing struggle for women's economic
rights. She proposes the necessity for targeted, ongoing initiatives around certain concerns
and emphasises the fact that these campaigns can be more successful than pursuing the
fantasy of a comprehensive, perfect, universal civil code. (Anvi Doshi: B-020)
TARGET AUDIENCE: (Itiksha Sawant: B-068)
Since the book, Law and Gender inequality have a feminist perspective along with an
insightful overview of the origins and also discriminations faced, and investigations in-depth
of women's economic rights, this book is ideal for all degree candidates, sociologists,
educators, employees, and businesswomen. The target age seems to be people or most
probably women from the age group of 17-50. To be more specific, this book focuses more
on a generation of women who are opinionated and are very capable of standing and fighting
for their rights and preferences. This book will remain to be a valuable contribution to the
field of sociology, academics, activists, and attorneys who work on the topic of Indian law of
sociology and also researchers. This book will assist those who are genuinely interested in
sociology and those who are working and battling for the equality and rights of women. This
book provides a piece of deep information about women’s life, problems faced in personal as
well as professional life, the differences that are met only because they are women, and
battles about their rights and an attempt to improve their situations as women. This book also
provides readers an understanding of their constructed-ness and accompanying mutability,

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beginning with how different civilizations view family connections, legal frameworks from
pre- and colonial times, a sense of the plurality of factors other than religion, etc. A lawyer
who reads this book will benefit from the knowledge it contains, and the sense of
understanding case studies of specific instances, and activists will learn how to become more
motivated and dedicated to a thing. This book will not only provide the importance of
equality but also provide the sense of right and wrong, the inspiration to fight against the
injustice against women, to stand against the violence done towards women, the importance
of case law in regulating women’s life, to women to be opinionated and also to stand for their
basic rights and to value them for who they are as a human being. It helps women to acquire
and build up great knowledge about their rights and their value. It is effective for the readers
because it educates everyone about the rights of women and their significance also the
benefits of those rights, which enable us in addressing the demands of students considering a
legal career and allow us to stop prejudice in social contexts. (Itiksha Sawant: B-068)
STYLE OF WRITING: (Anvi Doshi: B-020)
The writing style is concise, quick, and simple to read, with an emphasis on analysis
supported by facts and instances. If anyone had any doubts about the importance of law,
whether women need it, or whether it can change women's lives, the wealth of case material
provided, as well as the ways in which neat legal schema are upset by cases that come to
court and challenge it, and the effective order that the courts create simply by dealing with
cases, will persuade them of the importance of case law in regulating women's lives. The
picture depicts a highly dynamic and bustling legal environment. (Anvi Doshi: B-020)
STRENGTHS OF THE BOOK: (Hiya Shah: B-096)
Her work is strongly active in the context of modern academic tendencies in literary/cultural
critique. Her reasoning is straightforward, and the historical trajectory is unilinearly oriented
toward growing destitution and impoverishment of women. The text, on the other hand, is
full of oddities, exceptions, and paradoxical tendencies, progressive moments that are in
effect (if not actually) backward, and ambivalences that thrill the postmodern heart. These
ambiguities stem from a detailed analysis of case material from the country's numerous high
courts. The attention to detail not only supports the primary line of argument, but it also gives
a fleshedout tale that prohibits a simplistic determinism or causality .It also bases the rights in
active and real ways , and views their growth in specific legal moments - of law-making by
the legislature as well as the courts . Working within the framework of civil law and its
foundation - the control of property - the author investigates in depth women's economic
rights. Her study stems from her concern for resolving women's advancement and poverty
within the context of economic systems of property ownership and devolution, and so brings
the issue of women's rights into sharp light.
LIMITATIONS OF THE BOOK: (Hiya Shah: B-096)
There is a singular focus on women's access to property and economic support mechanisms .
This access is thoroughly examined in the various systems of family law and its legal avatars
.To provide an impression of the book's vastness and exhaustiveness, one would have to
virtually repeat the entire tale and the vast amount of material she has documented . There is
too much explanation about minority races and castes rather than distinct explanations about
them. Because of the simplicity of the arguments , writing the review was challenging .

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Because of the author's emphasis on property, diverse statuses of women may be analysed as
a whole - married, single, widowed, remarried, and so on. This wholeness is critical in
comprehending women's rights without being compartmentalised by marital status, and the
entire picture is given at the same time. This book is not an easy read for students who have
no sociological background since it provides no basic introduction of sociology. (Hiya Shah:
B-096)
CONCLUSIONS: (Dhyana Mehta: B-048)
The research is primarily concerned with family law reforms, but with a unique twist. An in-
depth assessment of women's rights in light of political manoeuvrings distinguishes the book
from others authored in this field. It also reveals the truth that the problem of female
enslavement is far too complicated for a simple or direct remedy. The book is really well
written in terms of structure, proofreading, language, and substance, and it would be a
significant addition to the current literature in this field. Except for minor issues like using
jarring historical conventions like Aryan and Dravidian for north and south Indian Hindu
practises, respectively (in section 2 of part 1), or simple factual errors like identifying the
dominant majority in Persia as Ismaili rather than Ithnashari (p 30), which could have been
avoided with more careful editing, the book handles the widely divergent material it seeks to
analyse with great confidence. The book will be remembered as a remarkable contribution to
the subject of Indian legal sociology and will be useful to academics, activists, and lawyers.
(Dhyana Mehta: B-048)

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