Gender cruelty, discrimination: Why are there so many restrictions on women&#39;s daily lives?

Gender cruelty, discrimination: Why are there so many restrictions on women's daily lives?

By Harasankar Adhikari
Violence against women is always a serious and dangerous crime, and it causes social and psychological pain to every society, as well as a stigma to all civilised society. This discriminatory act is always a debated issue in every society. Women's physiological weakness (sex, body, and desire) is the fundamental reason behind it. In the men’s world, women are considered as erotic capital, consumable items, and a medium for all sorts of illegal acts. Infanticide, genocide, etc. is purposeful evidence of conscious torture. So, they are women, but they are not human beings in the male world.
Our old mythological scriptures (i.e., Sankhya philosophy) teach us to treat them as 'Prakriti'(nature), and their strength and beauty are respected to make generations alive. Without women, society would not exist. Their procreation and nurturing qualities are respected forever. And at the same time, seeds of violence are hidden within these qualities. Women's bodies and sex have become the most tangible platform of violence against them. We worship female deities cheerfully and pray for peace, wealth, and other happiness. But we neglect our living deities at home and outside. Isn't it a case of dual diplomacy/hypocrisy? Where are our religions, humanity, and "Adaitism'? Where is our equity and justice? Swami Vivekananda preaches "Adaitism" which means we are only a soul (according to C.Jung, soul is a substance that has independent existence). There is no gender, religion, race, or any other differences among souls. We are the only sons of the one-great father. When we treat others differently in respect of gender, religion, caste, class and other demands, we are making hail of our own. It is the only vice.
Freud’s theory of psychoanalysis says libido-sexual pleasure is the energy of life. He was criticised for this comment because the aim of life is not only the fulfilment of sexual pleasure. However, "Advaitism" teaches that we are born with a specific purpose in mind: to know ourselves. Our spirituality with the performance of all duties in family life can renunciate us. It is a system to respect each other and to live together peacefully. It is the only way to control our sexual and material needs and demands. It teaches equity and justice. No difference is being facilitated through this system. It is the way to make oneself a Sattva guni from Rajas and Tamas. This simplicity in life can control the level of mental life (unconscious, preconscious, and conscious) and the dynamics of the mind (Id, Ego, and Super ego).
Why are there so many restrictions on women's daily lives? Why are they being criticised for their dress, style, interaction with others, and so forth? Have they made their own choices? Is only the male political mind the responsible factor? Perhaps males have inferiority complexes because they are afraid of their creativity, nurturing power, and strength.
Will Hindutva politics ensure the liberty of women at home and outside? We are observing 75 years of independence. But our women are not free from male domination and male torture. Some laws, programs, and policies are not enough because they are for the fulfilment of political politics. The current President of India is an honourable woman from the most backward community. It is a matter of glory. But what would be the case for others?

Comments

Grueling summer ahead: Cuttack’s alarming health trends and what they mean for Odisha

By Sudhansu R Das The preparation to face the summer should begin early in Odisha. People in the state endure long, grueling summer months starting from mid-February and extending until the end of October. This prolonged heat adversely affects productivity, causes deaths and diseases, and impacts agriculture, tourism and the unorganized sector. The social, economic and cultural life of the state remains severely disrupted during the peak heat months.

Stronger India–Russia partnership highlights a missed energy breakthrough

By N.S. Venkataraman* The recent visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to India was widely publicized across several countries and has attracted significant global attention. The warmth with which Mr. Putin was received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was particularly noted, prompting policy planners worldwide to examine the implications of this cordial relationship for the global economy and political climate. India–Russia relations have stood on a strong foundation for decades and have consistently withstood geopolitical shifts. This is in marked contrast to India’s ties with the United States, which have experienced fluctuations under different U.S. administrations.

From natural farming to fair prices: Young entrepreneurs show a new path

By Bharat Dogra There have been frequent debates on agro-business companies not showing adequate concern for the livelihoods of small farmers. Farmers’ unions have often protested—generally with good reason—that while they do not receive fair returns despite high risks and hard work, corporate interests that merely process the crops produced by farmers earn disproportionately high profits. Hence, there is a growing demand for alternative models of agro-business development that demonstrate genuine commitment to protecting farmer livelihoods.

The Vande Mataram debate and the politics of manufactured controversy

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* The recent Vande Mataram debate in Parliament was never meant to foster genuine dialogue. Each political party spoke past the other, addressing its own constituency, ensuring that clips went viral rather than contributing to meaningful deliberation. The objective was clear: to construct a Hindutva narrative ahead of the Bengal elections. Predictably, the Lok Sabha will likely expunge the opposition’s “controversial” remarks while retaining blatant inaccuracies voiced by ministers and ruling-party members. The BJP has mastered the art of inserting distortions into parliamentary records to provide them with a veneer of historical legitimacy.

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

The cost of being Indian: How inequality and market logic redefine rights

By Vikas Gupta We, the people of India, are engaged in a daily tryst—read: struggle—for basic human rights. For the seemingly well-to-do, the wish list includes constant water supply, clean air, safe roads, punctual public transportation, and crime-free neighbourhoods. For those further down the ladder, the struggle is starker: food that fills the stomach, water that doesn’t sicken, medicines that don’t kill, houses that don’t flood, habitats at safe distances from polluted streams or garbage piles, and exploitation-free environments in the public institutions they are compelled to navigate.

Why India must urgently strengthen its policies for an ageing population

By Bharat Dogra A quiet but far-reaching demographic transformation is reshaping much of the world. As life expectancy rises and birth rates fall, societies are witnessing a rapid increase in the proportion of older people. This shift has profound implications for public policy, and the need to strengthen frameworks for healthy and secure ageing has never been more urgent. India is among the countries where these pressures will intensify most sharply in the coming decades.

Thota Sitaramaiah: An internal pillar of an underground organisation

By Harsh Thakor* Thota Sitaramaiah was regarded within his circles as an example of the many individuals whose work in various underground movements remained largely unknown to the wider public. While some leaders become visible through organisational roles or media attention, many others contribute quietly, without public recognition. Sitaramaiah was considered one such figure. He passed away on December 8, 2025, at the age of 65.

New RTI draft rules inspired by citizen-unfriendly, overtly bureaucratic approach

By Venkatesh Nayak* The Department of Personnel and Training , Government of India has invited comments on a new set of Draft Rules (available in English only) to implement The Right to Information Act, 2005 . The RTI Rules were last amended in 2012 after a long period of consultation with various stakeholders. The Government’s move to put the draft RTI Rules out for people’s comments and suggestions for change is a welcome continuation of the tradition of public consultation. Positive aspects of the Draft RTI Rules While 60-65% of the Draft RTI Rules repeat the content of the 2012 RTI Rules, some new aspects deserve appreciation as they clarify the manner of implementation of key provisions of the RTI Act. These are: Provisions for dealing with non-compliance of the orders and directives of the Central Information Commission (CIC) by public authorities- this was missing in the 2012 RTI Rules. Non-compliance is increasingly becoming a major problem- two of my non-compliance cases are...

Search This Blog