Social Institutions

Since Independence, the government oI India has promulgated many laws to protect women`s
rights. In general, however, applications oI many laws are weak. An international study by
Rhoodie goes even so Iar as to state that India 'is a good example oI a country with an abyssal
gap between policy and practice.
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In particular in rural areas, India`s legal Iramework has less
inIluence on women`s rights than do the nation`s religions. India is home to more than 500
million oI women and in the context oI the continuous growth and development oI the last ten
years their situation is about to change dramatically.

Family Code
The State has Iought against child marriage since the 19th century and the legal age oI marriage
Ior girls has been raised continuously: Irom 12 in 1891, 14 in 1929, 15 in 1955, and Iinally to 18
in 1976. However, a high percentage oI women married beIore the age oI 20 shows that the law
is not respected. An estimated 30 percent oI girls between 15 and 19 years oI age are currently
married, divorced or widowed. What is more, in rural areas in the North, more than 50 oI
women are believed to be married even beIore the age oI 15.
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Polygamy is legal Ior Muslims and it also exists to some extent among Hindus, particularly in
cases where the Iirst wiIe has not given birth to any sons. Repudiation is also legal Ior Muslims.
For persons oI other religious belieIs, the divorce proceedings have been equal Ior men and
women since 1976. Divorce by mutual consent is legal but in reality, any woman who initiates a
divorce is condemned by the public opinion.
| Citation needed |
For that reason, divorces are very rare.
The Iather alone detains parental authority in Hindu and Muslim Iamilies. His authority is
partially limited only in educated and urban Iamilies. In the event oI divorce, the law assures
some equality with regards to child custody, but any advantages granted to the mother in this
aspect are rarely exercized as divorces are not common practice. The old Hindu traditions
Iavored men in matters oI inheritance: only sons not daughters - could inherit their parents.
AIter independence, however, these traditions were abolished by law. But in the North, nothing
has really changed and women are still deprived oI inheritance.
| Citation needed |
Contrary to laws
passed by the Indian Union, several local states allow the exclusion oI widows and daughters Ior
land inheritance. The conditions Ior women are most Iavorable in the South, where the national
laws tend to be respected more oIten. For the Muslim population, inheritance practices are
discriminatory. A daughter, Ior example, inherits halI as much as a son. This is commonly
justiIied by the Iact that a woman has no Iinancial responsibility towards her husband and
children.
Physical Integrity
Violence against women is very Irequent in India. Statistics show that wives are oIten the victim
oI domestic violence: in halI the states, the percentages oI women that are beaten by their
husbands vary between 10 and 20.
| Citation needed |
The practice oI dowry has been maintained
and thousands oI women are murdered every year by their husbands because the dowry is too
low. An estimated 6000 women are killed every year.
| Citation needed |
However, this Iigure most
likely underestimates the reality as the majority oI murders do not get registered.
Selective abortions are more and more Irequent in India, which explains a high percentage oI
missing women. Census data show that almost 40 million Indian women were missing in 2001.
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This practice is linked to an old tradition: during the past centuries, young girl killings were
Irequent. In 1870, the authorities prohibited this practice and demanded the registration oI all
births. But especially in rural areas, girl killings have continued and now, owing to technological
progress, it is getting easier to be sex-selective beIore birth. Moreover, when children are ill, the
Iathers preIer to pay treatment Ior sons than Ior daughters, so that more girls die.
| Citation needed |

Civil Liberties
Women are not Iree to move in the villages oI the North and suIIer severe restriction oI their
movement in the South. In the North the tradition oI the purdah prevails except in large towns:
80 to 85 oI women do not have any Ireedom. Purdah imposes at the same time the veil and
seclusion at home: the wiIe must ask permission to go to the village market or to visit Iriends.
BeIore the 10th century purdah did not exist. The Muslim invasion at that time lead the Hindu
husbands to enIorce this practice because they Ieared Muslims who imposed the purdah on their
wives. But the purdah is less respected in large towns: in Delhi nearly halI the women can move
Ireely. In the South, Muslims ruled only Ior a short time during the 18th century. As a
consequence, purdah aIIects less than halI the women in this region.
Restrictions on Ireedom oI dress only aIIect 50-60 oI women iI the Iollowing Iacts are taken
into account: in the villages oI the North the obligation to wear oI a veil and seclusion are always
linked, but in the South the obligation oI the veil is less Irequent. On the other hand, Ireedom oI
dress prevails oIten in towns.
Ownership Rights
In principle, several laws guarantee that women have access to property, including land. In the
North, however, these laws are not respected. On average halI the women may not even have
access to money (e.g. they must ask their husbands Ior a small amount oI money beIore going
shopping). In these cases, women naturally do not have access to other Iorms oI property as well,
including credit. The situation is worse Ior land ownership which is always restricted to men. In
the South, women can sometimes inherit land and Irequently have access to money: between 70
and 80 according to surveys.