MIGP PYQs, PYQs Mains Question

Q.2 Explain the constitutional perspective of Gender Justice with the help of relevant Constitutional Provisions and case laws. GS PAPER-II: POLITY (UPSC CSE 2023)

Answer.

APPROACH AND STRUCTURE

THE INTRODUCTION: Write that the Constitution of India aims to provide socio-political and economic justice to individuals irrespective of caste, class , and gender, among others.

THE BODY

- Then, write the basics of the constitutional perspective of Gender Justice.
- Then write about the constitutional provisions of gender justice.
- Use case laws to explain.

THE CONCLUSION: A constitution, however good, require good people to work it, and that is why systemic interventions by the organs of the state and the society are required to promote gender justice in the country.

THE INTRODUCTION:

The Constitution of India aims to provide socio-political and economic justice to individuals irrespective of caste, class , and gender, among others.

THE BODY:

The Constitution of India incorporates a non-discriminatory approach towards gender justice. The Constitution takes a gender neutral perspective while providing rights to the individuals. The word citizens or persons in the Constitution means that females and transgenders also have equal respect and rights under the Constitution. The Constitution is an instrument for bringing gender justice enabling women to be equal participants, and guaranteeing equal citizenship rights . It provides for various affirmative actions and cast upon a positive duty over the state to promote gender justice. The 106^th CAA providing 33 percentage reservation to women in legislative bodies is a prime example.

Various constitutional provisions for gender justice:

Equality before law	Article 14 embodies the general principles of equality before law and equal protection of laws. Article 15(1) and (2)prohibits the state from discriminating against any citizen only on the basis of any one or more of the aspects such as religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them. Article 15(3) makes it possible for the state to create special provisions for protecting the interests of women and children.
Equality of Opportunity	Article 16 provides for equality of opportunity for all citizens in matters relating to employment or appointment to any office under the State. Article 39 requires the State to direct its policy towards securing for men and women equally the right to an adequate means of livelihood [Article 39(a)] and equal pay for equal work for both men and women [Article 39(d)]. Article 39A directs the State to promote justice on the basis of equal opportunity and to promote free legal aid by suitable legislation or scheme.
Traffic in human beings	Art 23: Traffic in human beings and begar and other similar forms of forced labour are prohibited and any contravention is punishable under law.
Humane Conditions at Work	Article 42 directs the State to make provision for securing justice and humane conditions of work and for maternity relief.
Fundamental Duty	Article 51A (e)enjoins upon every citizen to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women.
Reservation of seats for Women in Panchayats and Municipalities	Article 243 D (3) and Article 243 T(3) provide for reservation of not less than one third of total number of seats in Panchayats and Municipalities for women to be allotted by rotation to different Constituencies. Article 243 D(4) T(4) provides that not less than one third of the total number of officers of chairperson in the Panchayat and Municipalities at each level to be reserved for women.

The Constitution provides for a number of provisions for gender justice, both specifically and implicitly. The rights to freedom including religious freedom, right to liberty and life and accessing the courts through Writs etc are also equally applicable to Women. The Courts have also widened the scope of gender perspective on justice by a slew of orders and judgements like:

Vishaka Vs State of Rajasthan	The Supreme Court issued the Vishaka guidelines that defined sexual harassment and put the onus on the employers to provide a safe working environment for women. This has resulted in the enactment of the POSH Act.
Mary Roy Vs State of Kerala	Women from the Syrian Christian community in Kerala were prevented from inheriting property due to patriarchal traditions.

	In 1986, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgment that granted Syrian Christian women the right to seek an equal share in their father’s property.
Lata Singh Vs State of Uttar Pradesh	In this landmark judgment, the Supreme Court declared that an adult woman has the right to marry or live with anyone of her choice. The court further ordered that the police initiate criminal action against people who commit violence against those who decide on inter-religious or inter-caste marriages.
Laxmi Vs Union of India	In 2006, Laxmi, an acid attack victim, filed a petition seeking measures to regulate the sale of acid and provide adequate compensation to the victim. Taking cognizance of the number of cases relating to acid attacks against women on the rise, the Supreme Court imposed stringent regulations on the sale of acid in 2013.
Shayara Bano vs Union of India (2017)	The SC declared “Triple Talaq” as unconstitutional. It reemphasized the significance of gender justice and women’s rights.
Abortion Rights	On September 29th, 2022, the SC declared that unmarried women have the same right to access abortion as married women.
Hadia Vs Ashokan	In this case, the SC ordered that the right to privacy includes a woman’s right to life and dignity which further includes right to marry as per one’s own choice.
Sabarimala Case	The SC declared that the discriminatory provisions for banning women of certain age from worship in Sabarimala is unconstitutional.
Navtej Johar Case	The SC brought the LGBTQ community into the constitutional perspective of gender justice.
Lt Col Nitisha Case	The SC asked the Army to address the gender discriminatory provisions denying command positions to women officers.

From the above cases it is clear that the constitutional perspective of gender justice has been widened and depend by the judiciary by using their inherent power of Judicial review. The public interest litigation has become another tool for enhancing the rights of women and transgenders for adjudication and interpretation of the Constitution which has enabled expanding the horizon of gender justice in India. The other organs of the state have also taken substantial steps, including various legislations and adopting policies and schemes, and programs for promoting justice for women and, recently, for transgenders through the 2019 Act.

However, the ground reality as far as justice for women is concerned, there are serious challenges that the country needs to address, whether in terms of employment crimes against women, discrimination in personal laws and the general attitude in society.

THE CONCLUSION:

The Constitution of India is a transformative document bringing transformative constitutionalism and that is why it has progressive provisions and value for enhancing gender justice. But as Dr BR Ambedkar said, a constitution, however good, requires good people to work it, and that is why systemic interventions by the organs of the state and the society are required for promoting gender justice in the country.

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