Simone Biles might have just made it that much easier for young women everywhere. Her decision to pull out of the Olympics tells girls that they matter, their voices are important, and that it’s okay to put themselves first Biles’s decision to pull out of the Olympics does more than shine a welcome spotlight on mental health (AP) In Simone Biles’s decision to quit, lies a crucial lesson for young women everywhere. It comprises a single, two-letter word: No. Biles’s decision to pull out of the Olympics does more than shine a welcome spotlight on mental health. By prioritising her…

In 2019, a junior woman staffer accused then chief justice of India Ranjan Gogoi of sexual harassment and, subsequently, a targeted harassment of her and her family. The Pegasus revelations tell us that her phone and that of 11 phones associated with her was likely under surveillance along with those of 10 prime ministers, 3 presidents and one king. Ranjan Gogoi, former chief justice of India is now a member of the Rajya Sabha, nominated by the ruling BJP-led government. Pic: Wikipedia At the height of the 2019 sexual harassment scandal involving then chief justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi,…

The Pegasus revelation must be probed to reassure half this country’s citizens that justice is our constitutional right; that there is zero tolerance for the abuse of power; that we are not wrong to repose our faith in our highest court Representational image. (Getty Images/iStockphoto) At the height of the 2019 sexual harassment scandal involving then chief justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi, ran the frisson of a rumour — was there a larger conspiracy? Gogoi has since retired and is now a Rajya Sabha member nominated by the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government. His accuser, after being dismissed from…

An examination of 40,000 marriages in rural India between 1960 and 2008 by a World Bank report finds that dowry’s taint has spread amongst Sikhs and Christians who now have higher average dowries than Hindus and Muslims Representational image. Three deaths, 10 days, 60 years of an anti-dowry law. Cold numbers that tell you not just about the pervasive power of dowry, but its spread to states where it was relatively unknown. The deaths over 10 days of Vismaya (22), Archana (24) and Suchithra (19) following alleged violence over dowry in Kerala, the state with the best gender indices —…

The Tamil Nadu state government’s announcement that women, and non-Brahmins, can apply to be temple priests signals the beginning of the end of another male stronghold. When the pujari at the Durga temple in Nalluthevanpatti village, Madurai, fell ill and could no longer perform the ritual pujas, his only child, a daughter, Pinniyakkal stepped up. Two years later when he died in 2006, she staked her claim to be the full-time pujari, a hereditary position at that temple. The local populace was appalled. Even though the temple deity was female, tradition dictated the pujari could only be male. So, Pinniyakkal…

When the pujari (priest) at the Durga temple in Madurai fell ill and could no longer perform the ritual pujas, his only child, a daughter, Pinniyakkal, stepped up. Two years later, when he died in 2006, she staked her claim to be the full-time pujari, a hereditary position at that temple Representational Image. (HT archive) When the pujari (priest) at the Durga temple in Nalluthevanpatti village, Madurai, fell ill and could no longer perform the ritual pujas, his only child, a daughter, Pinniyakkal, stepped up. Two years later, when he died in 2006, she staked her claim to be the full-time…

The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights says 3,621 children have been orphaned since the start of the pandemic. With over 360,000 deaths so far, this is likely an underestimation Representational image. (AP) It started with a WhatsApp message. “A 2 months old baby boy and a 2 yrs old baby girl [sic] need a home because their parents have passed away due to Covid,” read the message. The kids were up for adoption. There was a phone number and a request to “kindly share it as much as possible”. Representational image. (AP) Covid-19’s catastrophic second wave was raging.…

The Tejpal judgment could have stopped with an acquittal on reasonable doubt due to lack of police evidence. Instead, there are insinuations about the woman’s credibility, including the fact that she admittedly had no physical injuries after the assault Former journalist Tarun Tejpal. (AFP) Despite that, many of those questions, and replies, are now on public record thanks to a 527-page judgment by Kshama Joshi, the additional sessions judge at Mapusa who acquitted Tejpal of all charges. With its unrelenting focus on the complainant, the judgment tells you less about the sexual crimes Tejpal was accused of and more about…

A widowed, unlettered refugee from Bangladesh who remained unsure about her age, she had come to Delhi with two young sons, acquiring employment, a bank account and a property in what was then called the East Pakistan Displaced Persons Society, now Chittaranjan Park Representational Image. (Getty Images) With the death of my Amma last week, I joined the hundreds of thousands of Indians coming to terms with grief and loss. Still, I guess, she was one of the lucky ones who managed to get not just a hospital bed but, crucially, oxygen and an intensive care unit support.

Much has been written about Jeo Baby’s The Great Indian Kitchen, streaming on Amazon Prime. Its truth prevails across the globe. Leisure is a male pursuit while the women chop, clean, sweep, fry, wash, simmer, serve A screengrab from The Great Indian Kitchen. The unannounced guest is someone we’ve all met. “The women can rest today,” he says grandly. The men are taking over the kitchen. After dinner, you can see from the way her shoulders sag that the kitchen is an apocalyptic mess: Dirty utensils, splattered curry, onion peels, and, from afar, a voice demanding two cups of black…

A wake-up call to first set up a national-level task force to study the pandemic’s impact on gender and, next, to suggest possible remedies. The blunt truth is India cannot afford to mutely witness any further erosion in gender rights. India’s fall in ranking stems largely from an old crisis: The exit of women from paid work. Since 2011-12, 25 million women, roughly Shanghai’s population, have quit the workforce. If you go back to 2004-05, it’s 47 million. (ANI) Whichever way you look at it, India’s 28-point tumble to land at 140 out of 156 countries in the annual World…

Who can quarrel with free washing machines, except to point out that it reiterates a belief in what male-dominated parties hold to be woman’s true place? Someone should tell them, it’s not behind the spin cycle. It’s in the House. And it’s time women voters delivered that message. The demand for 33% reservation of seats in the assemblies and in Parliament gets a great deal of lip service in party manifestos. This humbug is both tired and dated. When we are half the population, why settle for anything less in the legislature? (PTI) Travel concessions for women, a salary for…