International Women’s Day is for commemorating the glorious history of women’s prolonged struggles for achieving their rights, and also to pay tributes to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for organizing women and fighting for their rights.
UN call to the entire world says: “On 8 March 2025, join us to celebrate International Women’s Day under the theme, “For ALL women and girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.” Despite the rapid development of science and technology, oppression and discrimination against women continue abated. And snatching away of women’s hard-earned rights by neoliberal-neofascist forces are pushing back women into a situation of even several centuries back at a global level.
In countries like India, where obscurantist and reactionary religion backed fascist regimes prevail, the condition of women is the worst. in such situations, the culture of misogyny and practice of patriarchy is dominant from top to bottom. The typical instance is that of India where the dignity and basic human rights of all oppressed including Dalits, Adivasis and women, especially working and Muslim women, are recklessly trampled under the fascist Modi regime.
On 2024 a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms and National Election Watch revealed that 134 sitting MPs and MLAs in India face accusations in cases involving crimes against women. Among these, the BJP has the highest number of sitting MPs and MLAs.
In every election, BJP’s manifesto focused on reducing ‘high rates of crimes against women’, ‘increase female education’ and ‘women-employment levels’; and ‘introducing a constitutional amendment to bring 33% reservation for women in parliamentary and state assemblies. Now BJP is claiming that what BJP had promised in its election manifesto was fulfilled by Modi – Shah. But everything is Jumla. Thus overall number of crimes against women per one hundred thousand of the population increased from 56.3 in 2014 to 66.4 in 2022. Obviously, the pro-corporate policies of Modi-Shah duo make the very survival women very difficult.
Whatever progress is there in the field of education, it is due to the continuous struggles and dialogues of women organisations and activists. At the same time, the NEP (New Education Policy 2020) is systematically undoing even the minimum progress that has been there in the field of girl’s education.
Today’s India’s spending on education is one of the lowest in the world; it been less than 0.5 percent of India’s GDP. Between 2018 and 2023, this proportion came down from 0.46 to 0.37 per cent. Girls from SC/STs and economically and socially backward classes are being deprived of higher education due to casteism and on account of the massive hikes in fees. Scholarships for girls and women from minorities, Dalit, Adivasi and other vulnerable sections have been stopped. Similar is case with Women’s Labour Force Participation Rate (LFPR) that has decreased from 27% in 2012 to 22.9% in 2021.
This grave situation regarding women’s rights under the Modi government are not mere policy aberrations, but deeply rooted in the ideology of the RSS. As we all know, BJP is the political of RSS, and the reins of the regime are ultimately in the hands of RSS whose ideological guide is Manusmriti. As such, BJP follows Manusmriti, that denies basic human rights to women, as the guideline for policy formulation in the Hindurashtra envisaged by it. In the name of religion and culture, the RSS fascists restrict women’s freedom and autonomy from family to public space. They have been using the same strategy of unleashing regressive patriarchal values to subjugate women for centuries.
Their patriarchal, Manuist view on women can be seen echoing everywhere. It is reflected in court, police station, education and working placesIn the name of culture, they are taking away various rights that we have gained through long struggles and sacrifices.
This is to be seen in the broader context of the surge in global neofascism and, especially the ascendance of far-right Trump regime in US. It has become a threat to women and all oppressed people the world over.
Of course, today, the fight against oppression on women should be carried out as inseparable from the uncompromising struggle against neoliberalism and neofascism.
Let’s commemorate International Women’s Day. All women must unite to protect the rights they have fought for. In this regard, we have to remember our ancestors who fought for women’s rights and end gender discrimination.
AIRWO calls upon all women to unitedly come forward for achieving their rights irrespective of minor differences among them. Let’s strive forward for building up a society free of all gender discriminations!
M Selvi
General Secretary
All India Revolutionary Women’s Organization AIRWO
1st March 2025
