Gurpreet Singh

Sharmila Joshi

Editor

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In Malia
 
 taluka
 
 of Junagadh
district in Gujarat, a differently-abled woman was given the rights to her late
father’s land, which an uncle was trying to usurp; a woman from a minority community
got a share in her husband’s property after he forced her to leave the house,
and she can now send their two children to school while the husband is on the run;
another woman filed divorce proceedings against an adulterous husband and was assured of a monetary compensation, a house in Rajkot, and police protection.
 
 These victories in a
cluster of villages in Malia (also referred to as Maliya in some government records) have
been won due to the efforts of a group of women to fight pervasive gender
injustice. They have formed a Nyaya Samiti – a justice committee – to address cases
of domestic violence and other vulnerabilities under a larger
federation called the Maliya Mahila Manch.  The Aga Khan Rural Support Programme was involved in its formation. Started in 2006, the Manch is a
federation of 75 self-help groups consisting of 1,186 women from 56 villages.
Its various committees include the Nyaya Samiti, a Swasth Samiti, a Sikhshan
Samiti and a Vayvati Samiti – working on issues of justice, health, education,
law and liaison with the government.

Nayay_Samiti_Members.png

The Nyaya Samiti has five
members from different social and caste segments – Hiraben Parmar, Halimben Lakha,
Geetaben Nemavat, Kanchanben Khanpara and Jayaben Khorasa.  All the women, in their 40 and 50s, were part
of the self-help groups for about five years before the federation collectively
selected them as committee members. 
 When
the Samiti came together, its members were given information about judicial
proceedings by a government legal advisor at the Junagadh district court. Thus
equipped, they began handling complaints and cases. This they do in part by sending
legal notices to the accused. Two members, Hiraben and
Kanchanben, have some education, and draft the notices on the Manch’s
letterhead. Over time, by handling several cases, all five have become familiar
with the relevant laws, and the lawyer- advisor also pitches in sometimes.

Identity_card_issued_by_district_court.jpg

The
verdicts are processed and delivered in a village ‘court’ on the 14th of every month.
The court is a site given to them by the
 
 gram panchayat
 
 in Bhanduri village.
 “A victim can file a
case by giving 25 rupees as processing fee,” Hiraben says. “We send a notice to
the accused and give a tentative date for the proceedings. We have faced a lot
of problems [including] death threats. But when you try to do something good then
courage follows automatically.”
 
 The
committee listens to both sides and gives a verdict that can be acceptable to both.
They have no official status and their methods are
based on persuasion, mediation and taking the discussion to the larger
community – sometimes, these discussions stretch across an entire day or even
more than a day.
 
 If,
as has often happened, an accused resists the ‘judgement’, the committee has to
enforce it with the support of the police or refer the case to the district court.
If a case is successfully resolved, the ‘client’ pays Rs. 500 to the Samiti as
processing fee. The client also pays for expenses such as travel to the police
station or the court. The Rs. 500 goes to the Samiti’s
account and covers minor expenses or the costs of those complainants who cannot
afford to pay anything.
 
 Various stories speak
of the remarkable ability of the Samiti to fight for justice. “In one of our cases,
a husband [a well-off construction contractor] was cheating on his wife,” Hamilben
recalls. “On being questioned about his infidelity, he started beating his wife
frequently, and left her and their two children to fend for themselves.” A previous
client persuaded the woman to seek help from the Nyaya Samiti. She was initially afraid to do so, fearful that it might escalate the beating – but
then she came to the Samiti.
 
 A summons was sent to
the man. He refused to show up and instead targeted the Samiti members. “He
would come with his goons to our office and threaten us, and pelt stones at our
houses during the night. We were initially scared, but the police supported us,”
Hiraben says.
 
 The determined Samiti
women persisted with the case and sent three more summons. When the man still did
not turn up, they again approached the police and he was compelled to appear for the judicial
proceedings.
 
 The Samiti tries to
take an unprejudiced view. Both sides are given the space to come together and
speak. After the hearing, each side is given different options to consider,
especially regarding their children. In the case of the contractor, after detailed
discussions, the Samiti asked him to give one of his houses in Rajkot and Rs. 2.5
lakhs to his wife after they were divorced.
 
 But it is often
difficult for the Samiti to ensure compliance. Hiraben says, “In this same
case, we took the woman to her house in Rajkot, broke open the lock that her
husband had put on it and informed him. The man arrived in the village that
night and mercilessly beat his wife. She managed to escape with the children
and called me. I requested the sub-inspector of Rajkot to intervene.”
 
 Working
on such issues has been an uphill journey for the women on the Samiti. They
have had to overcome resistance even from their own families. Their years of self-help group work, which included bringing
government schemes to the village, gave them an initial boost and credibility. And over time, their success in settling disputes, in
reconciling families or resolving other problems, has given them wider credibility
and acceptance.

Hiraben belongs to a socially-backward
caste and lives on the village’s periphery, but her work on the Samiti has earned
her respect and repute in her own community as well as among other villagers.
“The cases we resolve act as moral support to other victims of violence. Our clients
persuade other women and give them the courage to stand up against the tyranny
of a male-dominated society. Isn’t this a form of empowerment – to speak up
against what is wrong?” she asks, with pride.
 The Samiti has
resolved 32 cases so far. Such has been the success that families that have migrated
to Rajkot, Una, Jamnagar and even Pune are now approaching the Samiti. The
district court is supportive; in one instance, the judge, Hiraben recalls, admonished
the appellant and said, “Why would you want to waste your money here? Go see
the federation [the Maliya Mahila Manch].” It says a lot about these
extraordinary women and their efforts.

A league of extraordinary women

असामान्य महिलांचा महासंघ

ଅସାଧାରଣ ମହିଳାମାନଙ୍କର ଏକ ଦଳ

مثالی خواتین کی اتحادی تنظیم

Bhanduri

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A league of extraordinary women

In Junagadh district, village women have formed a committee to fight against gender injustice, and their success is drawing queries from other districts and states

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