138 Is The Truth Ugly?

Cambridge Law Review (2019) Vol IV, Issue ii, 138–147

Sumangali System: Is the Truth Ugly?

Yamuna Menon*

Abstract
The tussle between universalism and relativism is a hotly debated issue
under the human rights regime. The influence of the same is visible in varied
spheres including labour rights. India in particular being home to a huge labour
force demands attention on the various local practices in the industries and its
contrast with rights guaranteed to labour at a universal level. The black letter law
does not always produce the ideal solution, and one such instance is the Sumangali
system in the textile industry. However, is this system extremely evil as it is presented
to the world? The answer requires a deeper and closer look at the context and the
lives of the stakeholders.

I. Introduction
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights emphatically states that “[e]
veryone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms… without distinction of any kind”
under Article 2. This is the core spirit of universalism, wherein the rights must be
enjoyed by individuals based on universal notions.1 The labour standards set by
International Labour Organisation for instance, stems from such ideas that are
placed as standards for the nation state.2 However, has this idea then triumphed
* Menon is a final year B.A. LL.B. (Hons.) student at National Law School of India University,
Bangalore. I would like to acknowledge and extend my heartfelt gratitude to Prof. Babu Mathew
and Prof. Rashmi Venkatesan for providing helpful insights and sharing their expertise.
1
J Donnelly, “Human Rights: Both Universal and Relative (A Reply to Michael Goodhart)” (2008)
30(1) Human Rights Quarterly 194, 195.
2
International Labour Organisation (ILO), “How International Labour Standards are Created”
<https://www.ilo.org/global/standards/introduction-to-international-labour-standards/interna-
tional-labour-standards-creation/lang--en/index.htm> (accessed 15 April 2019).
 Is The Truth Ugly? 139

in extending recognised universal rights and freedoms to every human across

jurisdiction? The response would be a clear negative. It is in this context scholars
suggested economic relativism as an explanation to differential rights and freedoms
since these are founded on socially constructed ideas that differ according to time,
place, nation and culture.3 This leads to a friction between universalism and
economic relativism in many instances. The widely prevalent Sumangali system
in the textile industry of Tamil Nadu is a suitable example in order to understand
these conflicting principles on human rights discourse.
The main focus of this paper is to understand the reasons behind the
continued prevalence of Sumangali system that blatantly infringes human dignity.
Why does this system attract girls? Why has this system attained the significance it
has today? Is it a trade-off between rights and ‘development’? Should this system
continue? The paper will delve into these in light of economic relativism. With
these questions in the backdrop, the central argument of the paper is that Sumangali
system thrives on the ‘fictional’ female agency of the girl child.
The theme is developed around the contrast between universal labour rights
and economic relativism analogous to cultural relativism, by relying on academic
articles, reports and books. The aim of the project is to bring out the core reasons
for the flourish of the Sumangali system in textile industry, and the objective is
to analyse the extent of agency exercised. For this, the real-life experiences of
the young girl children provided the perspective to pierce the veil of dominant
narrative of ‘victimisation’.

II. What is sumangali system?

Sumangali scheme4 is a system prevalent in the Tamil Nadu textile
industry, wherein girls aged between 13–18 years are employed as ‘apprentice’.5
The scheme witnesses migrant workers moving in to these textile mills from the
neighbouring states as well.6 The idea of Sumangali worker is that of a female
3
D Donoho, ‘Relativism versus Universalism in Human Rights: The Search for Meaningful Stan-
dards” (1991) 27(2) Stan J Int’l L 345, 348.
4
Exchange of dowry is a recognised crime under Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961.
5
Sumangali scheme and bonded labour in India, Fair Wear Foundation (2010) <https://www.
fairwear.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/fwf-india-sumangalischeme.pdf> (accessed 15 April
2019). As per a later decision in Tamil Nadu Spinning Mills v The State of Tamil Nadu Working Paper
No. 9182 of 2007, apprentices are covered under Minimum Wages Act, 1948. Hence non-pay-
ment of minimum wages to Sumangali girls is violation of law.
6
Gerard Oonk, et al, “Maid in India: Young Dalit Women Continue to Suffer Exploitative Condi-
tions in India’s Garment Industry” (Report, Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations
and India Committee of the Netherlands, April 2012) 19; Inter-State Migrant Workmen Act, 1979
has been enacted in India for governing matters of migrant workers.
140 Is The Truth Ugly?

who works in these mills for a collated amount after a period of time to facilitate
marital bliss. In essence, the narrative accepted by many is that the girls work for
earning their potential dowry and the system is a marriage assistance scheme.7
Moreover, the formal employment relationships are avoided in order to escape the
obligations imposed on employers at multiple levels.8 Therefore, this system is
considered to be exploitative in nature where the innocent girls are termed to be
the ‘victims’ of the greed of capitalism.9 However, many fail to notice the other
side of the story; the story that the Sumangali girls have to say. The civil society
assumes upon themselves the moral obligation to free the victims from the shackles
of Sumangali scheme.10 But is that what the girls want? The proponents of rights
and freedom simply cut through the system, without understanding the core needs
leading to the flourish of such system in the twenty-first century. The fundamental
reason for this biased view ‘to protect the girls’ arise from the idea of universalism
and the uniform application of labour standards at the international level to the
local labour force.

A. Universal labour rights

ILO conventions and the sustainable development goals11 suggest certain
standards of labour rights that the nation states must strive to achieve.12 India has
been falling behind in taking up this responsibility until last year when it ratified

7
Sindhu Menon, ‘Adolescent Dreams Shattered in the Lure of Marriage: Sumangali System: A
New Form of Bondage in Tamil Nadu’ (2006) 4(3) Labour File <http://www.labourfile.com/sec-
tion-detail.php?aid=337#> (accessed 15 April 2019). Additionally, during my conversation with
NGOs in Tamil Nadu (CARET), the idea followed by civil society is that of a direct connection
between Sumangali system and dowry.
8
Apprenticeship Rules Central, April 2015. Apprentices cannot be more than 10% of the work-
force which is violated by the textile mill owners. They employ girls under the Sumangali system
without formal contracts.
9
N Mani and N Krishnan, “Understand the Labourer’s Problems Under the Sumangali Thittam
Scheme in Textile Industry in Tamil Nadu, India” (2014) 1(6) International Journal of Business
and Administration Research Review 118, 120.
10
Understanding the Characteristics of the Sumangali Scheme in Tamil Nadu Textile & Garment
Industry and Supply Chain Linkages, Solidaridad and Fair Labor Association (2012) 27.
11
Target 8.7 which suggests to “take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour,
end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of the
worst forms of child labour, including recruitment and use of child soldiers, and by 2025 end child
labour in all its forms” under Sustainable Development Goal 8-Target 8.7 (Promote Inclusive and
Sustainable Economic Growth, Employment and Decent Work For All), International Labour
Organisation.
12
Also see Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948, articles 23 and 24.
 Is The Truth Ugly? 141

two conventions concerning child labour.13 Subsequent to this, policies were to

be formulated to implement the ideas contained in these conventions. But can we
implement these ideas applicable on a universal level at equal par in India? Here is
where the idea of universalism stumble.
Universal labour rights envisage elimination of child labour so that children
are facilitated with the opportunity to develop physically and mentally to their full
potential.14 In addition to this, the Minimum Age Convention, 1973 provides that:
[M]inimum age for admission to any type of employment or work which by
its nature or the circumstances in which it is carried out is likely to jeopardize the
health, safety or morals of young persons shall not be less than 18 years.15
Economic exploitation of a child is looked down upon by the international
community.16 However, the context and circumstances of the vocal nations while
framing such obligations at international level differ considerably from developing
nations like India, for instance.
The scholars supporting universalism would consider that, for example,
concepts like equal remuneration,17 prohibition on forced labour,18 safe housing
conditions and facilities19 is universally applicable and all nations must adopt
steps to ensure the same. In furtherance, India has made efforts to follow certain
international obligations.20 However, still our society has not escaped the vices of
exploitation of young labour and has not been successful in providing dignified
working conditions. This is because of a crucial reason—the idea of rights and
freedom differ according to place, time and culture.21 The way an American
labourer asserts her right to clean workspace is to be distinguished from an Indian
labourer in content as well as context in its entirety.
Economic relativism comes in handy in such situations when the idea
of one’s right has to be shaped based on the circumstances and surroundings.
13
Minimum Age Convention 1973 (No. 138) and the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
1999 (No. 182) were recently ratified by India.
14
International Labour Office (Geneva), The End of Child Labour: Within Reach (International Labour
Conference, 95th Session 2006) <https://www.ilo.org/public/english/standards/relm/ilc/ilc95/
pdf/rep-i-b.pdf> (accessed 15 April 2019) 23–9.
15
Minimum Age Convention, ILO C 138, article 3. Read also, Worst Forms of Child Labour Con-
vention 1999.
16
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989.
17
Equal Remuneration Convention 1951, ILO C 100.
18
Elimination of Forced Labour Convention 1957, ILO C 157; Discrimination (Employment and
Occupation Convention) 1958, ILO C 111.
19
Recommendation 115 on Workers’ Housing Recommendation 1961.
20
The Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Act 2016, The Right of Children to
Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009 and Tamil Nadu Hostels Act 2014.
21
Ben White, “Defining the Intolerable Child Work, Global Standards and Cultural Relativism”
(1999) 6(1) Childhood 133, 134.
142 Is The Truth Ugly?

Universal labour rights cannot be applied on a one-size-fits-all framework, however

disregarding them in the name of relativism is to be frowned upon. Economic
relativism cannot in any way legitimise the violations of human rights, however it
can be a practical analytical tool.22

B. Economic relativism as a quietist approach?

Relativism, be it economic or the larger boundary of cultural relativism, is
a useful corrective tool to pseudo-universalist notions.23 As Balakrishna Rajagopal
rightly puts it “[d]evelopmentalisation of human rights discourse has caused the
turn to culture”.24 Critics argue that economic relativism is quietistic in accepting
the utility vis-à-vis those economies. These surroundings are the product of
social hierarchies, political actions and various forms of decision making subject
to moral and utility grounds.25 Imbibing local content to global standards help
in understanding and discovery and not legitimising the practices.26 Therefore,
economic relativism will be the suitable tool in understanding systems like
Sumangali scheme to decipher the core reasons such practices are active in the
domestic sphere.
According to economic relativism, social economy acts as the foundational
‘authority’ for decision making. It provides the certainty to the decision maker to
justify the acts in the face of legal ambiguity, by providing a solution to the ‘economic
dilemma’ of liberal legalism.27 However, this justification through economic
relativism at the outset seems to move away from the need to understanding the
basis of practices by imposing the widely accepted standards from outside. This
is a wrong approach as can be seen from the dominant narrative surrounding
Sumangali system.

III. Sumangali system: issues, causes and results

Economic relativism and the development discourse have a close connection.
State as a motor of economic development engages in developmental repression
which is justified through the trade-off thesis.28 When private parties engage in
such repression, the idea takes a U-turn. The trajectory privileges criminal law
22
ibid 135–7.
23
Robin West, “Relativism, Objectivity, and Law” (1990) 99(6) Yale LJ 1473, 1475–8.
24
Balakrishna Rajagopal, International Law From Below: Development, Social Movements And Third World
Resistance (2003) 203.
25
West (n 23) 1492.
26
Donoho (n 3) 351–2.
27
West (n 23) 1492.
28
J Donnelly, Universal Human Rights in Theory and Practice (1989) 188.
 Is The Truth Ugly? 143

approach that works via the reductive traditional dialectic of victim protection and
offender incarceration. This distances itself from the direction of freedom.29
The imposition of state security apparatus, which are influential products
of universal labour standards and rights with its discourse and technologies of
control, is removed from the women’s human rights, their freedom and easing their
suffering.30 Therefore, it is pertinent to understand the idea of Sumangali system
as understood by the Sumangali girls themselves.
It is a matter of fact that Sumangali girls do not believe the system to be
repressive in nature at the outset.31 Is it their own belief or a belief imposed by
the surroundings? It is argued that, it is the latter in light of the “fictional” agency
that the girls exercise at all stages of their decision-making while being part of the
Sumangali system and this unfortunately marks the flourish of Sumangali system
through the lens of economic relativism.
Even though financial conditions trigger the idea to work at a young age,
it is not the sole reason for girls to join the textile factories.32 There are diverse
reasons including lack of interest in education, public perception of being part
of industrialisation (through a factory job) as opposed to primary agricultural
hard labour and a false imagination of a luxurious life at the textile mills.33 It was
also understood that many of them make this choice themselves and not under
parental pressure, subject to exceptions.34 However, it is argued that this exercise
of their female agency is distorted and is fictional in nature. This is because the
reasons leading their decisions are founded upon painted circumstances that the
community itself imposes on the girl child. She is not free from the chains of public
opinion and perception to independently think and make choices.
These influences on the female agency are manifold. One, the girls who
are already part of the system provide rosy picture of a future to the gullible
young child—about financial independence and other ‘attractive’ facilities. Two,
the factory personnel convince the girls to believe promises on money, education,
protection and other services to make her life ‘enjoyable’.35 Three, the influence of

29
See Ratna Kapoor, Gender, Alterity and Human Rights: Freedom in a Fishbowl (2018) 98.
30
See Janie Chuang, “Rescuing Trafficking from Ideological Capture: Prostitution Reform and
Anti-Trafficking Law and Policy” (2010) 158(6) University of Pennsylvania Law Review 1655.
31
Solidaridad and Fair Labor Association (n 10) 6, 22; White (n 21) 139.
32
Oonk (n 6) 17–8.
33
Macro Level Understanding of Sumangali Scheme and its Impact on the Lives of Camp Coolie
Workers and the Economic Share of the Camp Coolie Workers in the National And International
Economy, SOCO Trust – Action Aid (2014) 5-6.
34
Solidaridad and Fair Labor Association (n 10) 13–24.
35
These promises are given to allure the girls into the scheme and turn out to be false later.
144 Is The Truth Ugly?

outside media and entertainment on the idea of her freedom and human dignity,36
to name a few. This creates a bubble of false consciousness within which the girl
child functions day in, day out.
The promise of the lump sum amount attracts majority of the girls to work
under this scheme. The lack of availability of independent financial services and
access to collated amounts for persons lacking security evidenced the reasoning
for choosing Sumangali scheme. Marital bliss is not the sole driving force for the
necessity of such funds; there are instances like medical requirements, repayment
of loans and maintenance of basic shelter.37
When it comes to the parents of the girl child, they consider the factory/
mill premises to be a safer surrounding for their girl children to grow with adequate
basic facilities. Parents also consider it as a way to develop a sense of discipline and
moulding of their girls to fit the traditional ideas of a role of woman in society,
where the ultimate goal is to attain a happy family life.38 The girls during their
upbringing are shaped into endorsing this narrative in the society which in turn
leads to their exercise of agency being biased and narrowed, “fictional” as it is
called in this paper.
It is disappointing to note, while advocating the rights and freedoms of the
Sumangali girls, the civil society “[w]hich is the nongovernmental and noneconomic
connections and voluntary associations that anchor the communication structures
of the public sphere in the society component of the life world”, as Habermas calls
it,39 fails to address the root causes while in its race to highlight the exploitation
and human rights violations. The diehard abolitionists who consider such practices
sabotage universal labour rights40 imposes their ideas on the girls to make them
believe that their narrative is ‘the’ sole one in their best interest. By failing to listen
to these girls, the mistake we commit is again pushing the girls to make choices
under their fictional female agency.

IV. Way forward

Taking guidance from ‘capability approach’ as propounded by Martha
Nussbaum, the Sumangali scheme must be understood in the framework of one,
36
Oonk (n 6) 17–8; Solidaridad and Fair Labor Association (n 10) 6, 13–24; SOCO Trust – Action
Aid (n 33) 36. It must be noted how such short term facilities or pleasures attract the girls into this
scheme. This in turn shows the gullible nature of the girls who are unable to separate false from
the reality.
37
SOCO Trust – Action Aid (n 33) 36.
38
Solidaridad and Fair Labor Association (n 10) 15, 22.
39
Jurgen Habermas, Between Facts and Norms: Contributions to a Discourse Theory of Law and Democracy
(MIT Press 1996) 366–7.
40
Solidaridad and Fair Labor Association (n 10) 26.
 Is The Truth Ugly? 145

primary moral importance of freedom to achieve well-being, and two, this freedom
to be subject to the people’s capabilities, their real opportunities and the value
accorded.41 Therefore, the abolitionist approach will worsen the situation by
directing the girls to hardship as this view is blind to the narrative of the girls on
account of over-emphasis on universalism and the universal labour rights. The
societal structures and hierarchies cannot be divorced while understanding the
Sumangali system as they are deeply rooted in the local context. This however, in
any way, does not legitimise the violations but will provide solutions to the dilemmas
over certain practices. This approach will also ensure that girls are facilitated with
an environment to make choices free from other influences gradually, by better
understanding the economic context, freedoms and capabilities.
The first step should be in formulating a legal regime to govern the
Sumangali scheme. In doing so, it must cover specificities about the legal status of
a Sumangali girl—whether she is an apprentice, contract labourer or employee.
In addition, it should also contain guidelines on eligible age for work, mandatory
requirement for a written contract, details on working hours, wages and leave as
well as rules governing migrant workers. This express legal framework can raise
awareness about the scheme and allied labour issues among various stakeholders
including the international brands in the supply chain.
On the other hand, the international textile brands can also initiate steps by
having tags on their clothes which mention, for instance, ‘made under Sumangali’
which shifts a moral burden on the ultimate consumer, who can make a choice. In
the long run when the demand for such goods falls, these steps will ensure that the
exploitative working systems are weeded out and replaced with healthy working
environment for the girls.
Following this, there must also be efforts in developing mutual support
networks with current Sumangali girls and ex-Sumangali girls. The girls who
have experienced the vices of the system can share their insights as well as other
opportunities available outside of the same, with girls who are currently trapped
in the Sumangali system. This will help in creating an environment of mutual

41
M Nussbaum, “Human Rights and Human Capabilities” (2007) 20 Harv Hum Rts J 21, 22. In
addition to this, certain regulations governing mill owners for providing standard work environ-
ment will facilitate the achievement of this framework.
146 Is The Truth Ugly?

respect, understanding and empathy which can empower the girls to realise the
imposed exploitation and consequently make a choice for themselves.
Lastly, the State should take steps to ensure that educational programmes,
skill development sessions and other alternative avenues to explore one’s potential
are readily accessible in neighborhood where the Sumangali system prevails.
The imposition of views on the girls, alter their decision-making process
and thereby results in only exercise of an agency, which they think are ‘real’, to be
only a manifestation of ‘fictional’ female agency. This must be cut at the root for
achieving long lasting solutions for the community at large by erasing information
asymmetry. This will also give rise to Sumangali system not seen as a plague in
the society, but as a practice which is to be understood and analysed in the local
context. In conclusion, the girls have to undergo a process of cleaning the already
existing notions in order to exercise their free will which will ensure dignified
human life (individual human dignity) as a product of one’s choice.

V. Conclusion
Universal application of labour standards to all the nations divorcing the
local contexts is a relativist’s nightmare. The paternalistic narrative picturising
Sumangali girls as ‘victims’ of oppression and exploitation is lacking an
understanding of the issues surrounding this practice. It is in this context that lens
of economic relativism must be utilised to understand and analyse the system, and
in no case to legitimise the practice.
Universal labour rights prescribe standards to be achieved and cannot serve
the labour force in every nation state as they differ in place, time, culture, social
hierarchies, political actions and various forms of decision making. Economic
relativism on the other hand, facilitates in understanding systems like Sumangali
and subsequently finds suitable solutions to the problems in such systems.
When social economy acts as the authority for decision making in cases of
legal ambiguity, certain problems arise especially when the primary stakeholders
in systems like Sumangali lack voice. The diehard abolitionists fail to acknowledge
the reasons behind Sumangali system. It is not just a method to gain a collated
amount for potential dowry; in most of the instances, the girls themselves make
the choice to work for varied reasons as already discussed. However, this decision-
making process is tinted with public perception, beliefs of other members of the
society who directly influence the girls and other mediums of media. Therefore,
 Is The Truth Ugly? 147

the choice that the girl child makes using her agency, is in reality not a ‘real’ choice,
but a product of ‘fictional’ female agency.
Additionally, when it comes to advocating rights and freedoms of Sumangali
girls, again we tend to forget that our views are imposed on the girl as opposed
to letting her decide in an unopinionated environment. Therefore, it is their
capabilities—opportunities and its value—that the Sumangali girls must gradually
become aware of, in order to exercise their agency to full potential. As witnessed
above Sumangali system thrives on the ‘fictional’ female agency of the girl child, and solely a
cut through approach deciphering the reasons for decision making by Sumangali
girls can ensure individual human dignity in the long run. Therefore, the truth
behind Sumangali system is not as ugly as it seems to be.