SOCIAL ISSUES

GENDER INEQUALITY
RELIGION, CASTE
& POLITICS

Submitted by: Submitted to:

Anika Shrivastava Mrs. Soumya Acharya
X ‘A’ TGT (Social Science)
Roll No 4 Sagar Public School
Gandhi Nagar
 GENDER DISCRIMINATION
 It is hierarchical social division.
 It trends to be natural and unchangeable
 It is not based on biology but on social expectations and stereotypes.
 Men are supposed to work outside and women to do household work and
take care of children.
 In Rural areas women fetch water, collect fuel and work in the fields.
 In Urban areas, poor women work as domestic helpers and middle class
women work in offices or other sectors apart from their domestic work.
 Work done outside home by women is not valued and does not get
recognition.
 FEMINIST MOVEMENTS
 Role of women in public life especially politics was minimal.
 Earlier only men were allowed to participate in public affairs, vote and
contest for public offices.
 Women in different parts of the world organized and agitated for equal
rights.
 These agitations demanded enhancing the political and legal status of
women and improving their education and career opportunities.
 The movements aimed at equality in personal and family life are called
FEMINIST MOVEMENTS.
 This helped in improving women’s role in public life
INDIA’S STATUS IN WOMEN EMPOWERMENT
 Indian society is still male dominating (PATRIARCHAL).
 Women literacy rate is 54% compared to 74% among men.
 Small portion of women go for higher education as parents want to spend
money on boys rather than girls.
 Proportion of women in highly paid and valued job is still very less
 Average women work 1 hour extra than men still as she is not paid for
that, her work in not valued.
 Even after Equal Remuneration Act, 1976, women are paid less than men.
 Sex ratio is very low in India. Average is 919 girls per 1000 boys which is
even below 875 girls per 1000 boys in some states of India.
 Women are common victim of harassment and domestic violence.
 GENDER BIAS IN POLITICS
 Issues related to women’s well being are not given adequate attention.
 Feminists and women’s movement concluded that unless women have control power, their
problems will not get adequate attention.
 One way to solve their problem is to make it legally binding to have a fair proportion of
women in the elected bodies.
 In India, the proportion of women in legislature has been very low but now things are
improving.
 In 2014, participation of women has increased to 12% of its total strength.
 One third of seats in panchayats and municipalities are now reserved for women.
 Women organizations are now demanding at least 1/3 rd of seats in the Lok Sabha and state
Assemblies for women.
IF NOT RAISED IN POLITICAL DOMAIN, ALL THIS MIGHT NOT HAVE HAPPENED
 RELIGION AND POLITICS
 In a country with religious diversity, followers of one religion presented themselves as
superior to those of other religions.
 Religious differences are often expressed in politics.
 Organizations like Human Rights and Women’s movement found that the victims
usually belong to religious minorities.
 They demanded the government to take special steps to protect religious minorities.
 Ideas, Ideals and values drawn from different religions should play a role in Politics.
 Gandhiji also recommended that politics must be guided by ethics drawn from all
religions.
 COMMUNALISM & SECULARISM
 Communal politics is based on the idea that religion is the principal basis of
social community..
 Communalism in politics creates political dominance, political mobilization in
terms of usage of sacred symbols, emotional appeal and fear.
 The most ugly form of communalism is communal riots and massacre.
 Secularism on the other hand does not give special status to any religion.
 Secular state give freedom to all to follow or not to follow any religion.
 Secularism prohibits government to discriminate any one on the grounds of
religion and at the same time allows the state to ensure equality within
religions communities.
 CASTE INEQUALITIES IN INDIA

 Unlike the gender and religion – caste division is special in India.

 All societies have some social inequalities and some form of division of
labour.
 Most societies – occupations are passed from one generations to another, it is
an extreme form of caste system.
 Members of the same caste group were supposed to form a social community
that practicsed the same or similar occupation married within the caste group
and did not eat with members from other caste group.
 CASTE SYSTEM IN INDIA

 Indian society has 2 special groups called Schedule Castes (Dalits) and
Schedule Tribes (Adivasis). The prefix Schedule is added as these names are
listed in an official schedule.
 Schedule Castes were regarded as ‘outcaste’ in Hindu social order and were
subjected to exclusion and untouchability.
 Schedule tribes were usually secluded and lives in hills and forests.
 CASTE SYSTEM IN MODERN INDIA

 As a result of the economic development, large scale urbanization, growth of

literacy and education, occupational mobility and weaking of the position of
landlords in the villages, old notions of caste hierarchy are breaking down.
 The constitution of India prohibited any caste based discrimination and laid the
foundations of policies reverse the injustice of the caste system.
 Caste system has not disappeared from India.
 Untouchability has not ended completely, despite constitutional prohibition.
 CASTE IN POLITICS
 Caste system is based on occupation.
 In politics, members of the same caste are to be believed to be from the same
community.
 Same communities are believed to have same interest, ideas and demands.
 It is also believed that people from different communities do not share any ideas
and ideals.
 Political parties choose candidates keeping in mind the caste composition of the
electorate.
 During formation of government, representation of different caste and tribes are
ensured.
POLITICS AND CASTE

 Political parties and candidates in election make appeal to caste sentiment

to muster support.
 Some parties favour some castes.
 One person one vote system resulted in political parties paying special
attention to various caste groups as now every vote is important for them.
 Elections are not only about caste. Caste matters but many other factors too
play major role in wining the votes.
POLITICS IN CASTE
 Politics influence caste system and caste identities by bringing them into
the political arena.
 It is not politics that gets caste ridden, it the caste that gets politicized.
 Each caste group tries to become bigger by incorporating within it
neighbouring caste or sub-caste.
 Various caste groups are required to enter into a coalition with other castes
or communities and thus enter into a dialogue and negotiation.
 New kids of caste groups have come up in the political arena like
‘backward’ and ‘forward’ caste group.
ROLE OF POLITICS IN CASTE SYSTEM

 Caste difference in politics gave many disadvantaged communities the

space to demand their share of power.
 Caste politics has helped people from Dailts and OBC castes to gain better
access to decision making.
 Several political and non-political parties are demanding for an end to
discrimination against particular castes for more dignity and more access to
land, resources and opportunities.
 In some cases caste division leads to tensions, conflict and even violence.
 CONCLUSION
Politics based on religion, gender and caste
identity alone is not very healthy in
democracy. It although important to be part
of politics to ensure equal rights of people
but It can divert attention from other
pressing issues like poverty, development
and corruption.