Author: Dolly Jain
Introduction
India has been a patriarchal society, where women have been suppressed, ostracized, and marginalized from society. All of this gave rise to the feminist movement in the mid-20th century, which empowered women by addressing issues like female infanticide, and their education, and advocating equal pay but inadvertently overshadowed the problems faced by men. This article aims to shed light on these prevailing issues with relevant amendments which need to be done in current laws to safeguard the men of our society.
Historical background
Movements advocating equal representation and their freedom from this oppression prompted reservations for women and landmark legal frameworks. Among these, the 73rd and 74th Amendment Act 1992 reserved seats for women in State legislative bodies which increased women’s participation across the country. Furthermore, the Vishakha guidelines served the foundation for the Sexual Harassment of Women at the Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 or POSH Act led to the creation of a workplace complaints committee for the protection of women against workplace sexual harassment. The creation of the Ministry of Women and Child Development aims to focus on women’s upliftment, and initiatives like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao were initiated to give incentives to families to encourage them to send their girl child to school. We see female representation in male-dominated fields like politics, today the President of India is a female.
For the empowerment of men, similar policies should be implemented. The feminist movement which focused primarily on the oppression of females, created an imbalance, overlooking the problems that men face in our society. In reaction, the Indian Men’s rights movement began in 1988 when Ram Prakash Chugh, a Supreme Court advocate, established the Crime Against Man
Cell in Delhi to address issues such as false accusations related to Dowry and Domestic Violence. The Purush Hakka Sanrakshan Samiti (Men’s Rights Preservation Society) was formed in the late 1990s, to support husbands facing false imprisonment under dowry laws marking the beginning of men’s rights activism seeking legal reforms and social recognition.
Current scenario
Gender equality is a fundamental right enshrined under Articles 14,15 and 21. However, the reality doesn’t reflect this principle. A recent example of Atul Subhash, a Bangalore techie who was mentally harassed by his partner. Over the years he was subjected to 8 police complaints, including allegations of Domestic Violence. In his 24-page suicide note, he detailed his suffering which led to his death.
The tale of being a victim of societal pressure can be explained in the case of Laxman Prasad. In the reality show Rakhi Ka Insaaf, Rakhi Sawant referred to a participant, Laxman Prasad, as “namard” (impotent). Following the episode, Laxman reportedly became deeply distressed by the comments he received from society because of the public humiliation he suffered on a national platform, which deteriorated his mental health; he died shortly after the episode aired. His family alleged that his death was a direct result of the emotional distress caused by Sawant’s remarks.
Another example is of celebrity chef Kunal Kapur who was granted divorce by the Delhi High Court in 2024.He was also a victim of cruelty by his wife. The court found that his wife made unsubstantiated “wild allegations” against Kunal, including claims of infidelity and inappropriate behavior, which the court deemed as cruelty undermining their marriage.
Legal standing
Most legal remedies focus solely on women. The 2013 Vishakha guidelines see only women as the victims of workplace sexual harassment. As per the Act, only women can file a sexual harassment complaint. It fails to recognize that males can also be victims of sexual harassment. Section 498A addresses that there can be cruelty inflicted against women by their husbands and their relatives, but it doesn’t acknowledge that a male can also be a victim of mental cruelty. Taking into consideration the law fixed in Pankaj Mahajan v. Dimple[at] Kajal9 and Vijaykumar
Ramchandra Bhate v. Neela Vijaykumar Bhate. 10In a two-judge panel on Oct 6th, 2016, the Supreme Court ruled that the wife’s constant pressure on the husband, to separate him from his family is cruel because, in Indian society, it is a pious obligation of the son to sustain his parents. While Section 377 of the IPC recognizes sodomy where a man is a victim of rape, Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita,2023 the new law fails to address this issue which shows the lawmakers of our country don’t acknowledge men as victims of the existing social norms.
Few gender-neutral amendments exist like the Nirbhaya Act and the University Grants Commission (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal of Sexual Harassment of Women Employees and Students in Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2015which address that both men and women can be victims. Justice Verma committee which was set up after the Nirbhaya episode advised that all types of sexual assault be referred to as ‘persons’ rather than ‘women. ’
Social standing
According to the Economic Times Synovate poll, 19 percent of the 527 male respondents polled in seven cities — Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Pune – claimed they had experienced sexual harassment at work. In Bangalore, 51% reported being sexually harassed, while the figures in Delhi and Hyderabad, were 31% and 28% respectively. According to the NCRB 2022 report, false cases for three specific crimes viz. Rape, Attempt to commit rape, and Assault on Women with intent to Outrage her Modesty – account for 7.23% of the total false cases reported. Despite these statistics, there are no adequate laws and grievance redressal mechanisms to protect men. Society often assumes that men are perpetrators of harassment, and thus cannot be victims of sexual harassment.
Sexual harassment transcends gender, age, or gender identity. However societal norms teach males to suppress their feelings, be breadwinners, and never share their problems. Even if they try to express their difficulty and be vulnerable they are mocked for it and questioned about their masculinity because being vulnerable is often associated with a feminine quality. The comment ‘All violence is male caused, ’ by Ms. Maneka Gandhi, former Women and Child Development Minister shows a deep-seated bias in addressing male victimhood. This mindset along with the lack of laws protecting the plight of men perpetuates their vulnerability.
Conclusion
We see the rise of movements like #Mentoo and terms like Meninism which says that males are victims of feminism and that their struggles should be brought to attention. While men’s rights activists argue about the plight of men they are often criticized because these movements seem like a reaction to their hatred towards women and feminism but what can be done is that both genders can have equal representation. If there is a Ministry of Women and Child Development there can also be a Ministry for the Welfare of Men as demanded by the National Coalition for Men during the 2014 elections. By changing terms like women to spouses we are creating gender-neutral laws. We do not only recognize the plight of men but also adhere to the provisions enshrined by the Constitution of India.
Keeping both males and females on equal footing is imperative to prevent further distress such as suicide among men and to foster an environment where they can freely express their feelings and emotions in society.
REFERENCES
1. The Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act,Act of Parliament,1992
2. Constitution (Seventy-fourth Amendment) Act, Act of Parliament,1992
3. (1997) 6 SCC 241
4. Sexual Harassment of Women at the Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, ,No.14,Acts of Parliament,2013
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10. Indian Penal Code, § 377,No.45.Act of Parliament,1860
11. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023,No.45,Act of Parliament,2023
12. Criminal Law (Amendment) Act,No.13,Act of Parliament,2013
13. UGC (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal of Sexual Harassment of Women Employees and Students in Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations,https://www.ugc.gov.in/pdfnews/7203627_UGC_regulations-harassment.pdf,2015
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18. Harleen kaur,Men’s Rights in India-Gender Biased Laws,International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR),1006,2023
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