JHARKHAND MIRROR

Domestic Workers protesting in Ranchi

On March 14, 2011, more than thousand domestic workers especially women along with their children gathered near Albert Ekka Chauck, Ranchi the capital city of Jharkhand in demand of justice for Anna a domestic worker who died in a suspicious case. They started shouting slogans and began their march towards the office of Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Ranchi. They were shouting slogan “Anna Ko Nyay Do” (Give justice to Anna). They reached to collector’s office at 3 O’ clock in the afternoon. The police locked the entrance gate of the office. They were stop at the gate. K.K. Sone a well known IAS officer who is in the charge of Deputy Commissioner of Ranchi saw the crowd rushing towards his office, he ran away after assigning the job to the Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) for controlling, convincing and sending the crowd back. The women were sent back with the promise of hearing their plea. 

Of course, this is a regular practice in our democratic country the so-called largest democracy of the world. The legislative, the executive and the judiciary all of them become deaf and dumb whenever the marginalized people of this country demand for justice. When we approach to the Officers they run away and also protect the culprits. When we ask for an appointment to the Governors, they simply deny and when we approach to the Chief Ministers, they do not have time for us. Do I have to explain about our failed judiciary? Where should people go to plea for justice? However, all of them spare ample of time for the corporate delegates, contractors and bigwigs. Can anybody tell where these women should go and plea for justice in the corporate Indian State?    Read more…

 “Indigenous societies in India are showing an increasing tendency towards growing inequality in gender relations. This is more pronounced in societies that have integrated with mainstream Indian society.” Sanjay Basu Mallik; Gender relations and witches among the indigenous communities of Jharkhand, India. 

Santal Women in Jamshedpur

This gender differences will remain till it reaches to the apex fused and busted, eventually, coming to equilibrium stage. (Equilibrium really?) The capitalism and cat race for power will always there to push and pull either of the sex to go up and down. A society where one can view the clouds of equilibrium in sexes was about indigenous society, where always the collectivism lies. Both the sexes stand equally, responsible for the household and to the community. The parameters that, we look into were right to decide or right in decision making first in the household then in the community. The decision making in the social activity, decisions in the economic activity went parallel and equally with both the sexes. In respect to the village context, village is a family unit on whole, so all the responsibility were shared among the members of the family , whether to be sowing the fields, repairing the roofs or arrangement of child birth to marriage ceremony, all were done by the villagers (a family). Read more…