Stringent laws alone do not make just society, need to change our mindsets: CJI Chandrachud
New Delhi, Sep 16: There is no dearth of legal provisions to protect the interest of women in private and public spaces but law alone cannot make a just system, Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud said on Monday, stressing that society also has to shed its "patriarchal social attitude".
Speaking at News18 Network's She Shakti event, CJI Chandrachud said, "We must foster institutional and individual ability to look beyond the male default".
"There is no dearth of substantive and procedural legal provisions targeted towards protecting the interests of women in private and public situations. But good laws including the stringent laws alone do not make for a just society.
"Above all we need to change our mindsets. The mindsets must move from making concessions for women to recognising their entitlement to lead lives based on freedom and equality. We must zealously guard against apparently protective laws infringing women's liberties and choices," the CJI said.
Addressing the event, he said, "Talking about women's rights is not a women's thing. Some of the great life lessons I have learnt from my female colleagues."
"I believe equal participation of women is important for a better society. Before we adopted the Constitution of India, the Indian Women's Charter of Life was drafted by Hansa Mehta, who was feminist," he added.
The CJI said issues of safety, equality of opportunity, dignity and empowerment are not subsets that ought to be discussed in silos. "Every one of us in the country has to be a part of this conversation."
"Equal participation of women in governance, policy and leadership roles is positively linked to better development outcomes. When we either create or fail to address barriers in the path of women, we are jeopardizing our quest for a better society. Indifference is no longer an option," the CJI said.
He said there has been an increasing intake of women Civil Judges through exams -- 58 per cent of the total candidates in Rajasthan in 2023; 66 per cent of the appointments in Delhi in 2023, 54 per cent of the appointments in Uttar Pradesh in 2022 and 72 per cent of the total number of judicial officers appointed in Kerala are women.
Justice Chandrachud said the labour force participation of women is 37 per cent while the contribution of women to the GDP is 18 per cent.
"We have not exactly met the pre-independence hopes about women's economic participation. A part of the reason is the continued gendered allocation of domestic labour. Even as women are entering the workforce, they are never divorced from the domestic realm.
"They must simultaneously juggle domestic and care-giving chores. They are doubly burdened - almost as a penalty for transgressing the domestic threshold," he said.
The CJI said gender equality is a function not only of statistics but a function of lived realities of women.
"This also applies to assimilate traditionally excluded groups such as persons with disabilities, transgender and queer persons. Our expectations from these groups are heavily based on the stereotypical understanding of their supposedly innate tendencies.
"We fail to appreciate them as individuals. As women break rank and enter professional workspaces traditionally dominated by men, they are expected to act like men. Ironically enough, they are also tacitly expected to act like women, act-their-part, lest they upset the code of womanly conduct," he said.
He said that for a large part of their lives, institutions have operated in an information deficit about the objective abilities of women.
"Women traditionally were not a priority in institutional design. Even as they break into elusive and exclusionary places, women are met with institutional apathy at best, and hostility at worst. The result is high attrition rates and professional stagnation in entry level and mid-level roles for women," Justice Chandrachud said.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
