- rising fundamentalisms

The rising communal tides of the last two decades has brought things to a very fragile pass today, especially for women. On the one hand, is the militant mobilisation of the right wing in the name of religion, culture, tradition that is increasing its control of women, both within and across communities. With aggressive moral policing, assertion of dress codes, imposition of regressive traditions, the increased ritualisation of everyday life, the restrictions on women’s sexuality, mobility and freedoms are actually on the rise today. On the other hand, the growing power and violence exerted by caste and community panchayats is having a greater social impact today than ever. While combating such communal and regressive forces, our attempt has been to highlight the criminality and un-Constitutionality of such impositions on the lives of women and men. In cases such as that of Gudiya, Imrana, Babli and others, we have come together with other women’s groups to protest the collusion of religious and caste/community forces with regressive voices in politics, society, the government and the media.