IOSR Journal Of Humanities And Social Science (IOSR-JHSS)

Volume 20, Issue 4, Ver. 1 (Apr. 2015), PP 23-26

The Womens Question: Participation in the Indian National

Introduction

Indian society represented a conflicting position of women vacillating between extremes of patriarchy
and matriarchy. While Sati - the barbarous practice negated woman life on its own, tying her with the innate
presence of her husband even in his life after death, female goddesses in different forms like Sita-Parvati-Durga
or Lakshmi dominated the core of Hinduism and Hinduized way of life, as the ultimate source of strength,
wealth and wisdom. However the goddesses themselves and their stories of immense power always had an
overarching presence of elements like respect for husband, sacrifice and ones duty towards the larger society.
In this patriarchal society the womens question thus had an overarching presence ,but was always answered by
others rather than woman herself.
In this Indian society the coming of British rule again led to usage of the womens question which
figured prominently in their colonial discourses. While British rule used the barbaric and pitiable position of
women in India to their role of Civilizing Mission, the Indian reformers used the analogy of female goddesses to
free bharatmata from the colonial rapists. The colonized society was considered to be effeminate in
character, as opposed to colonial masculinity, which was held to be a justification for its loss of independence.
But women role vis-a-vis the family was looked through the patriarchal lens. The study of gender and
colonialism is thus an interface of two independent fields of studies, which brings to the surface various
conflicting questions leading to a confluence of these two parallel streams. However this journey of confluence
and conflict of gender and colonialism in India was multidimensional and multilayered.
Traditional histories of nationalism have largely been written from male perspective.(Davis, Neera
Yuval.1997).However mining of new kinds of sources womens writings, correspondences, biographical
literature, interviews as well as the reworking of more stranded historical document: organizational and private
papers, official reports and correspondent widened the ambit and scope of womens history.(Jafri,2012:280) .It
reveals a story of movement within a movement. Indian women contested for their legitimate space in society
challenging the overarching patriarchal set up and also participated in the National Struggle for independence. It
was a unique balancing act, where in they had at times to compromise and console itself with the partial fruits of
their long and ardors struggle and other times to sacrifice it altogether. The fight from domestic life to political
field was and is along drawn battle for women. Womens participation in the Indian national movement
expanded base of womens movement in India. Their participation in freedom struggle strengthened not only the
national struggle for freedom, it also provided the forum for women to bring forth the contestation and
contractions of the patriarchal society. The freedom struggle saw the participation of women from passive to
active to an activists role.
The basic form of womens movement was triggered by nineteenth century male reformers. Colonial
social reform of the nineteenth century tried to abolish abuses of social life and tried to usher in more
progressive gender relations. A new colonial education purveyed through the state, and Christian Missionaries,
altered and modernized traditional social perceptions; a new religious movement revived and consolidated older
humanitarian impulses and a sudden riseof a pool of human greatness eager to save the weak and helpless led
to enactment of social legislation by the government. (Sarkar.2007:2-5)For example: Abolition of Sati
(1829),Widow Remarriage Act. (1856) Child Marriage Act. (1872) Banning of Devdasi (1925).Despite these
positive progressive legislations the womens question was far from being answered by the women themselves.
One also needs to remember that womens question and the concern for domesticity was very much a part of the
civilizational critique of India.
In the early nineteenth century, the liberal reformers or the revivalists, made women as the recipient of
social change. Brahmo samaj and Prathana samaj especially did valuable work in educating women and gave
them their first experience with public work. Different communities started talking about educating women,
nevertheless not as a right holder but as serving the bigger male-dominated community. By the end of the
nineteenth century women started taking upon themselves the role of emancipators and fought cudgels for
personal reforms and political rights.

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The Womens Question: Participation in the Indian National Movement and its impact
II.

Women in the National Movement

Indian women association with the freedom struggle took a new dimension with the growth of popular politics
of the Gandhian congress mass movements. The womens participation before Gandhi was in a limited manner
for example in Swadeshi Movement in Bengal (1905-11) and Home Rule Movement. They also attended
sessions of Indian National Congress. But the involvement of really large number of women in freedom struggle
began with Gandhi who gave special role to women.The nationalist expressions of women in the freedom
struggle needs to be analyzed from following standpoints:
1. That women engaged with Nationalist polities despite constraints of social practices like the purdah system,
backwardness and low level of female literacy.
2. That women participated in INM through two parallel processes.
a) The domestication of the public sphere - women participated in the streets without compromising on their
domestic values.
b) The politicization of the domestic sphere - women handled situations in their families when nationalism
entered households through the activities of their husbands and sons.
3. That women used the symbolic repertoire of the INM and the political language of Gandhi to facilitate their
own participation. (Thapar-Bjorkert, 2006:171)
The participation of women in public domain started during Non Cooperation Movement (NCM) in
1920, when Gandhi mobilized large number of women. However the participation of women far from active
and they could participate only from within the domestic sphere. However the degree and intensity of this
control or segregation within the domestic sphere varied from household to household, community to
community, class to class and region to region. Though the domestic sphere and its fetter proved detrimental for
women to participate in public space but this very segregation helped to organize their activities in the domestic
sphere. In the absence of the male who would be jailed for his involvement in nationalist activity, woman
became the emotional support. Women organized themselves as both imparters and recipients of national
information.
They read the newspaper and also literature like the works of Premchand (1880-1936). Some women,
especially those of north India learned greatly from the work of Mahadevi Verma and Subhadra Kumari
Chauhan. They also listened to the conversations of their menfolk within the household. Occasionally the
women would hold meetings in each others homes. The women of a mohalla would invite other women to their
homes to discuss political events and to sing patriotic songs.
Mard bano ,mard bano
sab Hindustani mard bano
Avtaar Mahatma Gandhi huye
Azaad Hindustan Karane KoTranscript of poem sung by Kala Tripathi,,(H isar,Haryana,1930s) woman who stayed within domestic
sphere.(Thapar-Bjorkert,2006:180)
Thus, Gandhi evoked the idea of collective sisterhood. Concepts like sisters of mercy and mothers of entire
humanity epitomized the womens role.
There were five ways in which women participated passively in nationalist activities:1. Constructive programmers like spinning khadi.
2. Familial sacrifice
3. Being supportive wives and mothers to activists
4. Being pillars of support and strength.
5. Conducting secret activities. (Thapar-Bjorkert,2006:181)
In the NCM Gandhi consciously involved women in the attempts to link their struggle with the struggle
for national independence. But the programmes for women were devised in away that they could remain
domestic and still contribute. He gave women a sense of mission within their domestic field. Thus women
keeping their traditional role became the base of the freedom movement.
However with the progress of the freedom struggle even the womens question and consciousness was
caught in the swirling vortex of political emotions but it still remained within the contestation and subordination
of patriarchal structures. Through the two inter related processes, the domestication of the public space and the
politicization of the domestic sphere, often the confining social practices of purdah and the norms of segregation
and respectability, were turned around and at times re invented to become enabling one. If women could not
confront or change their circumstances through formal channels, they contested those limiting spaces by doing
what they wanted to do. By aligning those contestations for the benefit of the nationalist movement, they
developed political awareness of their own abilities as mothers, sisters and daughters but within the disabling
stricture of patriarchy.
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The Womens Question: Participation in the Indian National Movement and its impact
Womens public activities were more pronounced during Civil Disobedience Movement. Though
Gandhi visualized a supportive role for women , but they started getting impatient and demanded more active
role. Gandhi appreciated the impatience as healthy sign but refused to increase their greater role for he
believed that women can play higher role in picketing of liquor and foreign cloth shops. He chose women for
these tasks because of their inherent capacity for non violence. He maintained that the agitation of picketing
was to be
initiated and controlled exclusively by women. They may take and should get as much assistance as
they need from men, but, the men should be in strict subordination to them. (Young India ,1920:20) Kasturba
Gandhi initiated womens participation in the salt satyagrah by leading 37 women volunteers from Sabarmati
ashram. Sarojini Naidu and Manilal Gandhi led the raid on Dharsana Salt Works. KamlaDevi led procession of
15,000 to raid the Wadala Salt works. Women thus participated actively in processions, picketing of foreign
shops and liquor shops. Women were organized in Bombay, most militant in Bengal and were limited in
Madras. In Bengal some women also participated in violent revolutionary movement and unlike Swadeshi
Movement where they played a domestic supportive role, now they stood shoulder to shoulder with men with
guns and shooting pistols at magistrates and governors.(Bandhopadhyay,2013:241)
The female activism in Quit India Movement was visible most significantly. The important leaders of
congress being behind bars, made it contingent for the women leaders to take upon themselves the responsibility
of directing and taking forward the national movement. Sucheta Kriplani: coordinated the non- violent
Satyagraha while women also participated in underground revolutionary activities. Aruna Asaf Ali provided
leadership for these activities. The movement also witnessed large participation of rural women and also women
who had joined the communist movement. Mahila Atmaraksha Samiti or womens self defence, was in 1942 in
Bengal by leftist women lads, who mobilized the rural women.
For example, the Tebhaga Movement 1946, saw the formation of women and Brigade as Nari Bahinis
to fight against colonial policies. Subash Chandra Bose also added a womens regiment to his INA (1943) called
the Rani of Jhasi Regiment. He believed in the power of mothers and sisters. Thus assigning a new role to a
passive roles of the mythic Sita to a heroic valorous role of the Rani of Jhansi.
Among Muslims - Women had more intense, fight in the domestic sphere Purdah was epitome of
their culture and any contradiction to it was considered to be blasphemy . However the history does record the
defiant efforts of Muslim women leaders like Bi Amman, mother of Shaukat and Muhammed Ali, who
participated in khilafat Non Cooperation Movement at a meeting in Punjab. At a meeting in Punjab she lifted
her veil saying that one does not need a veil in front of her children, thus giving shape to idea of quaam. In the
case of Muslims, the personal laws too,were less problematic than Hindu social reforms. They did not demand
widow immolation and contained no strictures against widow remarriage. The Faraiji reformers of the midnineteenth century attributed the prevalence of such norms in Muslim to Hindus and thus encouraged Muslim to
popularize widow remarriage. Similarly with the growth of education, Muslim women, were instigated to
eradicate female rites and customs that Muslims shared with Hindus. However soon enough the muslim women
activists outran the original intention and they started criticizing absolute female seclusion. By 1930, they also
started demanding inheritance rights and by 1939, Muslim women got the right to initiate divorce. Growth of
communalism often worked in favour of women creating a competitive mobilization whereby women emerged
as a significant constituency. In 1938 Muslim league started a womens sub-committee to engage Muslim
women. With the emergence of Pakistan Movement more and more Muslim women got sucked into the
political movement. Their participation in this public spaces itself was moment of emancipation and liberating
for them.

III.

Womens Organizations

In the early, twentieth century many womens organization came into picture who were active in the public
arena and also focused on womens political and legal rights.
-Rashtriya Stree Sangha or Das Devika Sangha was started as auxiliary body of Congress.
-1910 Sarala Devi Chaudhurani Bharat stree Mahanandala tried to spread education
-In 1917, in Madras womens Indian Association was started by enlightened European and Indian ladies
Margaret Cousins and Annie Besant.
-1925, the National Council of Women in India was formed as a branch of the International council of Women
Lady Mehribai Tata was an actives of this society.
-1927, All India, Women Conference came into exsistence which championed for all sorts of women rights,
from franchise to marriage reform and the rights of women laborers..
- In 1920 in Bengal, Bangiya Nari Samaj campaigned for womens voting rights.
- All Bengal Womens union campaigned for legislation against trafficking of women.
Womens organization appealed to both government and nationality for support. However government support
was often a compromise. The nationalists on the other hand were more sympathetic for the womens question ,
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The Womens Question: Participation in the Indian National Movement and its impact
since 1920, because they needed their participation in the nation-building project. Women too privileged these
pieces of universalisation by placing nationalism before womens issues. The womens fight for suffrage was
granted in Government of India Act 1935 where the ratio of female voters was raised 1:5 and women also got
reserved seats in legislative. Similarly, various social legislations and acts tried to improve gender parity. For
example : The Sarda Act. Of 1929 which fixed the minimum age of marriage for females at 14 and male at
eighteen, laws defining womens womens right to property, inheritance, divorce, to restrain dowry and control
position. (Bandhopadhyay,2006:394)

IV.

Women and Partition

Thus by the pinnacle of INM Indian women across class, caste and religions barriers started
participating in the anti imperialistic and democratic process. Irrespective of the fact whether it was Hindu or
Muslim women, the issue of womens emancipation was always treated as subordinate to that of national
liberation, community honour or class struggle. According to Sumit Sarkar it was women and peasants who
represented the ultimate site of purity unspoiled by the modern world and western education. This form of
purity, chastity of the female body has been linked to the nation state. Its for reasons like this that women have
been seen as the symbol and repositories of group or communal national identity. The link between honour of
community leads to two forms of control over womens labour, their fertility, their sexuality and their mobility.
The first is internal form of control by their own community itself since the loss of control over their own
women is seen as threat to their masculinity, their family and their community. Secondly women find
themselves more vulnerable of violence by other community. Since they are seen as repositories of their
community honour and their rape, control and other forms of violence against them is seen as a more effective
manner of humiliating and subjugating that community .Women thus become more vulnerable to violence in
communal riots. The partition of India in 1947 revealed a similar story when women from both sides became
victims of sexual aggression and control in order to avenge the hurt and injury on the community in question.
Thus communal violence has seen the participation of women thereby proving that women are not necessarily a
collective but are well entrenched in their own caste and community identities. (Bandhopadhyay ,2006:398)
It was even more evident in the partition. As pointed out by Ritu Menon and Kamla Bhasin, they were
caught in continuum of violence where they had the choice either to be raped, mutilated and humiliated by the
men of the other community or to commit suicide instigated by their own family members and kinsmen to
prevent the honour of their community from being violated by the enemy. Empirical data supports this fact
when in a span of few months seventy five to one hundred thousand women were abducted or raped.
(Butulia,2001:208)

V.

Conclusion

The colonial historiography indicates that in India the modern notions of gender rights in the public
domain were premised on the public private split whereby private disempowerment and the subordination of
Indian women were masked and reinforced by the bestowal of public rights. Colonial reforms were modern but
at the same time the underlying throes of patriarchy were not questioned. It was merely the recasting of male
domination. Even after Independence, the reality is quite harsh. Despite citizenship rights being guaranteed by
the Indian constitution egalitarian society is a myth for majority of women. Legislations have not been able to
change societal attitudes and perceptions about women. Thus a fight for new values, new perceptions and a new
egalitarian based society- the womens movement- continues. Till the paradox exists the movement will and
should continue!
The land the provides grain and clothes is referred to as motherland and the cow that gives milk, ghee
and other dairy products is called mother-cow (gaumata). In the west the country is referred to as father land
but in India it is referred as motherland (Thapar-bjorkert,2006:236)e

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