Key Points
Key Points: Status of Women in India and the Need for Women’s Rights Movement
- Despite constitutional equality, women continued to face social and economic discrimination.
- The Towards Equality Report (1974) revealed worsening conditions of women since 1911.
- Gender inequality existed in education, employment, health, and political participation.
- Women from weaker sections like SCs, STs, minorities, and rural areas suffered multiple discrimination.
- Empowerment measures such as the National Commission for Women and 73rd–74th Amendments were introduced to improve women’s status.
Key Points: Anti-Dowry Movement
- Dowry became a major social problem affecting women across India.
- Women’s groups organized protests against dowry in the 1970s.
- Organizations like Progressive Organization of Women, Stree Sangharsh, and Mahila Dakshita Samity led campaigns.
- Dowry deaths increased despite the existence of the Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.
- Anti-dowry campaigns aimed to criminalize dowry and create social pressure.
Key Points: Struggle Against Domestic Violence
- Domestic violence included physical, psychological, and sexual abuse.
- Police often treated dowry deaths as accidents or private matters.
- Women’s movements demanded legal reform and state intervention.
- Legal changes empowered police to arrest perpetrators of domestic violence.
- The Prevention of Domestic Violence Act, 2005 strengthened women’s protection.
