The Gendered Dawn of Freedom: Tracing Women's Struggle

The history of the Indian freedom movement is incomplete without mentioning the contribution of women. Hundreds of women demonstrated immense bravery, sacrifice, and selflessness as they fought alongside their male counterparts in the quest for freedom. However, women’s participation in a male-dominated society was not an easy task. Thus, the struggle of women had two aspects: the fight for national independence and the fight for their rights within a patriarchal society.

Illustration by The Geostrata

This intersection of gender and nationalism illustrates how women advocated for social reform alongside their efforts for independence. Their notable campaigns and participation can be divided into three main phases: pre-Gandhian social reform movements, the Gandhian era of mass participation, and the post-independence challenges.

PRE-GANDHIAN PHASE 

On one hand, while the Indian culture represents women as a form of goddess – Lakshmi, Saraswati, and Durga – on the other, they are subjected to mistreatment, experiencing female infanticide and foeticide, and other forms of verbal and physical abuse. While there was substantial respect and recognition in the Vedic society, in the pre-Gandhian phase, their position degraded with the course of time.

They started experiencing problems like polygamy, sati, child marriage, and female infanticide. Moreover, the education of women was considered less important than that of men. 

Since then, the issue of improving women's status has been at the forefront of the social reform movement, like when Raja Ram Mohan Roy began questioning social orthodoxy in the first quarter of the nineteenth century.

During the period of the East India Company, other social reformers, such as Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Jyotiba Phule, challenged and rendered various effective contributions towards enhancing the status of women in society.

Such efforts made people speak up, and there were calls to abolish the practice of sati, child marriage, and the purdah system; prohibit dowry; promote widow remarriage; allow women the property right; and make educational reforms. These acts brought about improvements in the status of women and played a key role in laying the groundwork for the Gandhian era, which saw far greater participation of women in the national movement. 

THE GANDHIAN ERA

A discussion of the Indian freedom struggle is incomplete without emphasising the role of Mahatma Gandhi, for he was the person who spearheaded fragmented local discontents into a unified national movement. He worked tirelessly to bring about various social reforms, such as tackling caste discrimination, child marriages, and educational reforms, among others, through peaceful protests.

More significantly, he believed that full freedom for India would require active participation by men and women alike, as highlighted in his speeches. He was successful in bringing a large number of women into the movement, notable figures including Sarojini Naidu, Kamaladevi Chattopadhyaya, Annie Besant, Sucheta Kriplani, Margaret Cousins, Raj Kumari Amrit Kaur, and Vijayalakshmi Pandit, along with numerous anonymous women at the grassroots level.

The Indian freedom struggle saw three major nationalist movements under Gandhi – the Non-Cooperation Movement, the Civil Disobedience Movement, and the Quit India Movement. All three of which saw active participation of women, with some taking up leadership roles as well. Some women, like Kamala Nehru and Bina Das, were even arrested for their anti-British activities. The movement came as a powerful tide, washing away the societal perceptions that confined women to the shadows – unveiling their immense capabilities and contributions.

During the Civil Disobedience Movement as well, many women organised local salt-making activities, and Leela Roy, Sarojini Naidu, and Rajkumari Amrit Kaur emerged as some prominent names in leading local marches and salt production protests. 

Women's participation in the movement of freedom struggle was crucial in dismantling long-existing social barriers and posed a direct challenge to the traditional customs confining them to the four walls of the house. More than mere participation, women like Durga Bhabhi were involved in organising revolutionary activities and participating in armed resistance against British forces, defying notions of women’s exclusion from armed struggles. Similar defiance was also exemplified by the warring queen of Jhansi, Lakshmi Bai, during the first war of independence, who, in the words of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan, “…gallantly fought like a man.”

Additionally, women were members of prominent political and revolutionary organisations like the All India Women Conference (AIWC) and the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA). Various organisations such as Mahila Shilpa Samiti and Lakshmir Bhandar (in light of the Swadeshi agitation), Jyoti Sangh (Gujarat), Mahila Sabha (Mangalore, set up by Girijabai, mother of Kamaladevi Chattopadhyaya), the ‘Stree Darpan’ journal by Rameshwari Nehru also emerged during the 20^th century.

This immense activism displayed by women laid the foundation for subsequent feminist movements in post-colonial India, influencing policies on gender equity and social justice.

POST-INDEPENDENCE CHALLENGES 

Independence wrote with itself a new chapter for women's freedom. Post-independence, women were granted legal, political, educational, and social freedom, which changed the society dramatically. The Constitution makers made sure that women had the right to vote, access to education, and fair income. Moreover, in preceding years, various legislation was enacted concerning women, for instance, the Suppression of Immoral Traffic in Women and Children Act 1956, the Special Marriage Act 1954, the Guardianship Act 1956, the Intestate Succession Act 1956, the Orphanage and Widow Human Act 1960, and the Dowry Prohibition Act 1961. 

Most significantly, the National Policy on the Empowerment of Women in India, 2001, is regarded as one of the important strategies in the development process, which led to changes within the socio-economic environment by reducing gender gaps in education and employment and increasing the enrollment and retention rates of girls, particularly from marginalised communities.

The continued preference for a male child among individuals, the perspective of men being superior and more capable than women, has made the societal and cultural biases more ingrained, leading to the continued practice of female infanticide and foeticide, despite legislation. While women have access to education and employment opportunities, disparities still exist in terms of pay scale, promotions, and paid leave. Even the cases of sexual harassment in the workplace, despite laws being made, women are emotionally and physically restricted and compelled to leave their jobs.

Moreover, although women acquired the right to vote soon after the country achieved independence, the percentage of female participation in the country is still less than 15%. The use of tactics such as sarpanch-pati has proved to be a loophole in the legislation. Thus, granting rights to women without creating a supportive environment for their growth and advancement still binds them to age-old shackles.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the condition of women has improved to a large extent. Nonetheless, even after 78 years of independence, in some cases, women are still not treated equally to men and are considered a liability. It is necessary to take remedies for problems experienced by women. They should be treated equally within and outside the home and should be encouraged towards the acquisition of education and employment opportunities. India’s tryst with true freedom will be realised only when the women of this land gain genuine empowerment, for their unfinished quest for self-determination is inseparable from the nation’s own.

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BY AKSHITA JAIN

TEAM GEOSTRATA

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