This Republic Day, we hope Modi encourages the independence of women

This Republic Day is bringing us many new things to talk about. Rolling economic agendas, Obama’s visit, anticipating policy matters and what not! But along with all these, history is going to repeat itself. The marching of women contingent reminds us of the Rani Jhansi regiment which was one of very few all-female combat regiments of the Second World War. That time the regiment was working towards emancipating India from the British rule. This time the troop is marching to emancipate India from the tentacles of colonization that still entangle us. The troop is marching to display the agony of women and to free them from the oppression of the society. If backwardness were to be measured by death, rape and violence, women perhaps would be the most backward of all the communities. Recently, the party men encouraged Hindu women to bear a minimum of four children. This troop will march against the intervention of women’s freedom to decide how many she is capable of bearing. As Thomas Piketty said, “Inequality is often never by chance but is rather a feature of capitalism”. But when the sex ratio of age group 6-10 dipped down to the lowest 914, how can we prosper in a capitalist society? In India, more than half-a-billion women can substantially contribute to the labour market as entrepreneurs generating profits and build capital, but prioritizing them is seen merely as a social good and not integral to economic progress.

Obama’s visit cannot make us drop our feminist hat. While most Sashas and Malias stayed awake to watch his victory speech and his promises to provide girls the same opportunities as boys, we hope that this Republic Day, Modi and his US counterpart encourage the independence of women.

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About the Author: The article has been contributed by our intern, Shristi Banerjee.