The Centre for Law and Policy Research, in collaboration with Friedrich-Naumann-Stiftung für die Freiheit, held…
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Tag: gender rights
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A Queer-Trans Critique on Marriage Equality in India
On 14th December, the Supreme Court asked the Union to respond to a plea by an Indian and…
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Status of implementation of POSH Act in Chennai’s Collectorate and its subordinate offices
The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act) which is considered to be of the better piece of legislation protecting women’s rights and dignity, seems to be so only on paper in the Chennai, especially in the Collectorate and its subordinate offices. The executive authorities appear uninterested in implementing this progressive law and awareness about this law is lacking among employers, employees, and workplaces including companies, shops, households, and government organizations alike. This scenario does not only hold for rural areas but also to the metropolitan city like Chennai.
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Tackling Caste Discrimination through Law: Hyderabad Conversations
On 27th January 2020, CLPR organized a workshop titled ‘Tackling caste discrimination through Law’, for activists, NGO representatives, and CSO representatives. The workshop aimed at enabling and facilitating a better understanding of caste discrimination laws such as the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, The Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955, The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 and The Andhra Pradesh Devadasis (Prevention of Dedication) Act, 1982.
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Tackling Caste Discrimination Through the Law-Madurai Talks Among CSOs
On 10th January, 2020, CLPR organised “Tackling Caste Discrimination Through the Law”, a training workshop for civil society organisations and activists working on issues of caste discrimination in various parts of Tamil Nadu.
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Sexual and Reproductive Rights in India: Social Movements and Legal Battles – DAY 1
On April 14th and 15th, we hosted the ‘Sexual and Reproductive Rights: Social Movements and Legal Battles’ conference, in collaboration with the University of Bergen, Norway and the University of Sussex at the Bangalore International Centre (see the full agenda here). The conference aimed to bring together prominent activists, academics and lawyers to discuss important issues and approaches that have developed in sexual and reproductive rights (SRR) advocacy in India. One of the key objectives of the conference was to shed light on issues and marginalised communities that are at the margins of SRR discourse and action.This blog post presents the key points raised on day 1 of the conference.
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CLPR & CRR | Karnataka State Consultation | Towards a Rights-Based Approach to Child Marriage
On 9th March, 2019, Centre for Law and Policy Research (CLPR) organised a one-day consultation with Centre for Reproductive Rights (CRR), to discuss the implementation of the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 (PCMA) and the 2016 Karnataka Amendment to the PCMA.
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Discrimination of caste, gender, sexuality and disability: a study in Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh
The effects of caste-based discrimination in India have been documented extensively. However, studies on the role caste plays for women, sexual minorities, and persons with disabilities have not found any voice.
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Podcast: CLPR’s interventions in the fight against Child Marriage in India
Podcast on CLPR’s interventions against Child Marriage. Learn about our research into, and litigation against, Child Marriage and Marital Rape Exception.
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Child Marriage and Karnataka Amendments: Re-Engaging with the Debate on Voidability
Brototi Dutta of CLPR writes about the legal ramifications of making child marriages void, analysing the recent Karnataka State amendments to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act
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Violence that is Not Gender Neutral
With utmost respect to the Supreme Court, it is absolutely incorrect to state that domestic violence is gender-neutral. It is not. The world over, a vast majority of domestic violence is experienced by women at the hands of men. It is not a random event of violence but is a consequence and a cause of women’s inequality and is linked to the discrimination and devaluing of women. As per the National Crime Records Bureau, reported cases of domestic violence in India went up from 50,703 in 2003 to 1,18,866 in 2013. These are all cases of domestic violence against men. The U.K. Violent Crime and Sexual Offences study of 2011-2012 reported that 80 per cent of offenders in domestic or sexual violence were male.
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CLPR Comments on the Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and Rehabilitation) Bill, 2016
hile endorsing these criticisms of the draft bill, CLPR has in its comments to the Ministry, highlighted some additional points of concern and has suggested measures which could possibly strengthen the law. For instance, with regard to the enforcement mechanism, CLPR has suggested that it is imperative that there be an identification of nodal authorities such as the National Commission for Women, the Juvenile justice authorities as well as the Labour Department, which are crucial to the smooth and coordinated enforcement of the provisions of the bill. These nodal authorities can receive complaints and take the assistance of support services provided by stakeholders and non-governmental organizations, such as Childline.
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Panel Discussion on Diversity, Identity and the Law
This post is authored by Aishwarya Suresh Nair, IIIrd Year Student of the National Law Institute University, Bhopal. She is currently interning with CLPR.
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Courts and Women’s Rights in India in 2015
The Supreme Court has been predominantly lauded in 2015 for its far-reaching judgment in Shreya Singhal v. Union of India that expansively interpreted the freedom of speech. But we must not forget that the Supreme Court and some of the High Courts have rendered a few prominent judgments that have upheld women’s rights significantly in 2015.
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Two Finger Test in Rape Cases: Adding Insult to Injury
While conducting a study of the Fast Track Courts that have been instituted in Bangalore to try cases of rape and sexual assault, it was startling to discover that out of the 12 cases that have been disposed of by the FTCs since their establishment, 11 resulted in acquittals. The only case which resulted in the conviction of the accused was for the offence of “attempt to rape” and not rape. In this case, the court heavily relied on the medical reports which stated that the victim was “used to having sexual intercourse.”1 This conclusion was drawn by the Medical Officer upon conducting the two-finger test”.
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Chitra Balakrishnan’s Talk on Understanding Gender and Judging through Residence Orders
On the 8th of November 2013, CLPR hosted Chitra Balakrishnan who presented her research paper titled “Understanding gender and judging through residence orders in Karnataka Trial Courts – A discourse analysis”.
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Chitra Balakrishnan’s Talk on Understanding Gender and Judging through Residence Orders
Her research seeks to answer three main questions: Are judges in the lower courts in India making reasoned feminists judgments? Can the Hunter framework apply to trial court orders? What are the additional criteria one needs to look at to call a judgment feminist?
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Constitutional Principles in US v Windsor in the Indian Context
The US Supreme Court’s decision last month in US v Windsor has been celebrated around the world as a progressive step in gay rights and legalizing same-sex marriages. Even in India, it is anticipated that this judgment will be able to leave an impact on the pending Naz appeal decision in the Supreme Court. Although Naz and Windsor deal with different issues (decriminalization of homosexual acts in Naz and, recognition of same-sex marriages in Windsor), the fundamental concern is to stop discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
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Gender Justice and India’s Obligations Under International Conventions
A brief of the most important international rules in the matter of male/female equality.
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Sexual Harassment at the Workplace in the view of the Justice Verma Commitee
In the Vishakha Judgment the petitioner sought to enforce the fundamental rights of working women. The said…
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“A promise is a promise: Time for action to end violence against women” – IWD, 2013
The 2013 United Nations theme for International Women’s Day fits into the theme of the 57th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women being held at the United Nations Headquarters, New York. Making the elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls its major theme, the session seeks to focus on two key areas – (1) the prevention of violence and (2) the provision of support systems and rehabilitative measures to victims of violence.
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CII Confluence 2013 – Creating Social Value
The definition of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) continues to evolve over time. While ideas like diversity, inclusion and affirmative action have evolved in the West, they are at a relatively nascent stage in India. On the other hand, India is charting fairly unexplored territory with the proposal to make CSR spending mandatory. This summit brought together leaders in CSR, Disability and Affirmative Action from diverse organizations on a platform and help attendees gain actionable insights on how their organizations can weave CSR initiatives in the very fabric of business and nurture holistic and sustainable social development.
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Hoping for change: What might the Justice Verma Committee say?
January 5, 2013 must have been a busy Saturday for the members of the Justice…
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Lok Sabha passes the Sexual Harassment at Workplace Bill
A law on sexual harassment at workplace has been one of the most awaited and anticipated laws since the landmark ruling of Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan, (1997) 6 SCC 241 where the Supreme Court observed that sexual harassment at workplace constituted a violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution. Making the above observation, the Court in an unprecedented move, proceeded to lay down guidelines that were to be followed in all workplaces until a suitable domestic law is provided for by the legislature. Another remarkable and novel feature of the judgment was its inclusion of the private sector apart from the public sector in its direction for employers to establish sufficient preventive and remedial systems in the workplace for female employees.