Judging women based on clothes shows 'misogynistic prejudice': Kerala HC
Kochi (PTI): The Kerala High Court has held that judging women on the basis of their clothes or expecting them to be sad on getting divorce are indications of a "misogynistic prejudice" and "reinforce a very skewed gender stereotype".
The observation by a bench of Justices Devan Ramachandran and M B Snehalatha came while setting aside a Family Court order denying custody of the children to a mother for several reasons including that she wore revealing dresses, celebrated her divorce and had an account on a dating app.
Strongly disagreeing with the findings and reasoning of the Family Court, the High Court set it aside by saying that "courts cannot be suspected to be guilty of even borderline misogynism or sexism and our constitutional mandate is that we decide matters as per its conscience and within its overriding umbra".
The High Court granted custody of the children to the mother by also taking into account the kids wish that they wanted to stay with her full-time and were open to meeting their father on holidays.
In its recent order setting aside the Family Court decision, the High Court observed that through such cases it has realised "how much rigid gender roles and patriarchy have trickled down into societies and guides our thoughts and actions".
"We unfortunately continue to follow and perpetuate such unconsciously, which surely warrants continuous education and close introspection," It said.
The bench further said that in the "heteronormative context, being feminine is construed as synonymous to being modest and even submissive or that is how this term is more than often interpreted".
It said that consciously or subconsciously, societies impose restrictions on women’s autonomy and scrutinize their choices; and they are supposed to adhere to certain standards, including their choice of clothes and appearances.
"Such unwritten norms perpetuate casual sexism and strengthen the glass ceiling for women, with control being considered exclusive to men.
"Unfortunately, through time, unwritten dress codes impact women throughout their lives. The sexualization and policing of women’s clothes, even from early school days, become active barriers to self-actualization and a full life," the bench said.
Referring to the Family Court's reasons for granting custody to the father, the High Court said that the lower court found the mother to be a person of loose morals as the husband alleged that she wore revealing dresses and had posted her pictures on dating apps.
The High Court said that the Family Court arrived at the conclusion without any basis and without considering the woman's argument that it was her husband who created her account in the dating app and posted her pictures there.
"Such conclusions are unfortunately sexist in tenor, and lazed by archaic notions of patriarchy, especially when no one has a right to judge women by the manner in which she dresses, or by the choices of her manner of life.
"Though we cannot find the findings of the Family Court to be true even factually, we deem it necessary to remind that clothing is a form of self expression being part of an individual's identity, or an expression of general aesthetics," the bench said.
It further said that it was "unpardonable and impermissible in any civilized society to judge a woman solely on the basis of her dress, or to thus conclude upon her virtue or her modesty".
"The sartorial preferences that a woman makes, is that of her own choice, which cannot be subjected to moral policing or assessment, particularly by courts," it added.
The bench said the Constitution grants equal rights to all without reference to gender and it was unfortunate that it has to make such an observation, as a reminder, when the country is celebrating the 75th anniversary of its Constitution.
It also said that it cannot approve of the "gender statements", like women ought to be subdued, servile and submissive and feel sad on being divorced, made by the Family Court.
"The notion that women should be happy only with marriage and should feel sad on being divorced is, in our view, so ineffable that it requires no further expatiation (explanation)," the bench said.
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Rs 30,000 cr loss a month: Oil companies bleed as fuel prices on hold amid global energy spike
New Delhi (PTI): About Rs 700-1,000 crore loss per day. Rs 30,000 crore every month. India's state oil companies are quietly absorbing a massive financial hit to keep petrol, diesel and LPG prices unchanged even as global energy markets face a turmoil that is bigger than all previous crises combined.
While countries from Japan to United Kingdom have raised petrol and diesel prices by up to 30 per cent since the start of the West Asia conflict, fuel prices in India continue at two-year-old levels.
The war disrupted India's import of 40 per cent of crude oil (raw material for making petrol and diesel), 90 per cent cooking gas LPG and 65 per cent natural gas (used to generate electricity, make fertilizer, turned into CNG and piped to household kitchens for cooking), but state-owned oil companies have maintained uninterrupted fuel supplies with no rationing or shortage at any point in the last 10 weeks.
But this has come at a cost - Rs 30,000 crore under-recovery or loss every month for the three oil marketing companies - Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said.
The under-recoveries - the gap between input costs and realised retail prices - rose sharply in March/April before tapering a bit. Daily under-recoveries during April were estimated at about Rs 18 per litre on petrol and Rs 25 per litre on diesel, translating into average losses of Rs 700-1,000 crore a day for OMCs, they said.
At a news briefing on developments in West Asia, Sujata Sharma, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, said prices in the international markets, on which India relies to meet 88 per cent of its oil needs, have been volatile and supplies impacted.
Crude oil prices which were around USD 70 per barrel two months ago, are now at USD 120, she said. "It has been government's endeavour to keep prices stable so far and that there is no price increase for consumers," she said. "This has hit finances of OMCs... monthly under-recoveries are of the order of Rs 30,000 crore."
She, however, refused to say if retail petrol and diesel prices will continue to hold.
"As I said, the endeavour so far has been to see that there is no price increase," she said.
The three oil marketing companies (OMCs) have worked overtime to keep the supply lines running even when demand spiked due to panic buying.
The government intervention included excise duty reductions and absorption of part of the fuel cost burden. The special additional excise duty on petrol was cut to Rs 3 per litre from Rs 13, while excise duty on diesel was reduced to zero from Rs 10 per litre.
The under-recoveries would have swelled to nearly Rs 62,500 crore had the government not cut excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 10 per litre each.
The government, Sharma said, has taken a hit of Rs 14,000 crore a month in cutting the excise duty.
The Centre's effective absorption at peak crude prices was estimated at around Rs 24 per litre for petrol and Rs 30 per litre for diesel.
The February 28 strikes by the United States and Israel on Iran triggered a sharp escalation in West Asia tensions. Energy prices surged as the conflict widened and shipping risks intensified in the Strait of Hormuz - the shipping lane through which India and other countries imported crude oil, LPG and natural gas from Gulf countries. Tanker movement was disrupted.
The companies also faced additional costs from emergency crude sourcing, higher freight charges due to vessel diversions, elevated marine insurance premiums and refinery optimisation expenses. Despite these pressures, fuel and LPG supplies remained uninterrupted across the country.
The surge in crude prices and the decision to shield consumers from higher retail prices placed significant strain on OMC balance sheets and refining margins, sources said.
They added that the measures reflected a policy decision to prioritise consumer stability and economic continuity during a global energy shock.
Sources warned that a prolonged period of elevated crude prices could lead to higher working capital borrowings and force some recalibration of capital expenditure plans. However, investments linked to refining expansion, energy security infrastructure, ethanol blending, biofuels and transition fuels would continue with government backing, they said.
India's approach contrasted with measures adopted by several other economies, where fuel prices rose sharply after the conflict-driven energy shock.
Petrol prices increased by about 34 per cent in Spain, 30 per cent in Japan, Italy and Israel, 27 per cent in Germany and 22 per cent in the United Kingdom, according to estimates. Several countries also introduced rationing, conservation advisories, emergency relief packages or fuel caps.
In India, petrol prices remained Rs 94.77 per litre and diesel at Rs 87.67, with no rationing, mobility restrictions or supply disruptions, they added.
Sharma said the revenues that OMCs earn are used to buy crude oil, build infrastructure to process it into fuel and create channels that will take the fuel to consumers.
Their capex spending is all dependent on the revenues they earn, she added.
