Voices from the hills

Tribal women in Kinnaur protest against an archaic law that denies them share in property

Kinnaur,a snow-clad tribal district of Himachal Pradesh,is on the boil. Women are up in arms against a hoary inheritance law that debars them from inheriting property of parents and in-laws. Behind this movement is 60-year-old activist Ratan Manjri,who has mobilised thousands of tribal women,and even some men. Mahila Kalayan Parishad,the womens rights organisation she heads,has demanded scrapping of the law.

Societys attitude toward women hasnt changed despite high literacy and development. Women are exploited,deprived of their rights and tortured within the families. They have no voice or they just decide to remain silent to avoid further exploitation. But I am not going to see it happening in Kinnaur any more once I succeed in getting the law scrapped, Manjri declared as she travelled to Shimla this week after the snow started melting and roads opened.

The law,which applies to the tribal areas,permits only sons to inherit ancestral property. Even after marriage,husband inherits the property. If he dies,its the sons who get the property. Look at the bias against womenshe doesnt have right in the parental property nor in that of in-laws. Where is the security for women in Kinnaur? she says.

For Manjri,it has been a long-drawn war. For two decades,she created mass awareness by forming around 200 womens groups at the panchayat and block levels. She has been organising protests,dharnas and seminars and sending memorandums to various officials ranging from the deputy commissioner to the chief minister. She has also sent a memorandum to the President of India,Pranab Mukherjee,with signatures of 20,000 women which she collected roaming from village to village,braving snow and winter chill.

Manjri is consulting legal experts to file a petition in the high court to seek changes in the law. She also plans to hold a dharna at the Assembly during the next session which begins on March 12.

Manjri,who belongs to Ribba village of Kinnaur,set a personal example for fellow tribal womenshe inherited her parental property by forcing her brothers to give up her share.

Kinnaur has a population of 84,298 with 46,364 men and 37,934 women,as per the 2011 census. Average literacy rate of Kinnaur is 80.77 compared to 75.20 in 2001. Male and female literacy rates are 88.37 and 71.34 respectively.

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A graduate,Manjri keeps track of the happenings in the country. She closely followed the protests against the Delhi gang rape. Where is the security for women? I have heard the politicians speaking in the Parliament and outside asking for stringent laws. There have been protests and outrage all over the country. Angry youths were at India Gate for days. National TV channels debated the issue and a commission was set up to suggest changes in the law. But even today if you read newspapers,there are rapes not only in small cities,but in Delhi too, she says.