When the free nation of India was founded in 1947, we directly enfranchised the women of this country without any hesitation, much to the surprise of even the progressive western world. The message sent to the millions of women was loud and clear! In the emerging story of our glorious nation, they were to be partners and not subordinates to men.

However, we as a society must concede that the hopes of women have often been belied when this country has passed through choppy waters of political transition. As soon as we go through a period of drastic socio-political change, or come face-to-face with sudden upheaval of any sort, it is the women of this country who are found to be most vulnerable, owing to their already unfair situation due to centuries of discrimination. This has happened once again when in the aftermath of the abrogation of Article 370 in J&K, a purely social and non-political institution, that is the Women’s Commission of the erstwhile state was scrapped.

This has robbed the women of J&K of a strong state-backed ally, especially in the face of the recent pandemic which confined the male family members to their homes, embittered by financial distress, causing a sharp rise in incidents of domestic violence. In a conservative society nourished by a patriarchal narrative, women to varying degrees are condemned to the vicious cycle of financial dependence, lack of opportunity, mental harassment and isolation.

A recent news report suggests that there is astonishingly only one police station in the city of Srinagar for ten districts of the Kashmir division which handles women’s issues. This either looks like a story from a utopian land where gender-based crimes are absent, or speaks volumes of the indifference of the authorities towards these issues. As a result of this, a disproportionately huge number of women-related cases were handled by the Women’s Commission of the erstwhile state, providing much-needed refuge to women in distress.

Sign this petition addressed to the Lt. Governor of J&K, Minister of Women & Child Development and Prime Minister of India and support the cause to bring our Women's Commission back!

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