INTRODUCTION
One of the beautiful features of law is that it is constantly evolving as per the changing needs of the society. While there might be various new developments, certain key areas of the law are still the same. According to Article 14, the fundamental principle is that it forbids class legislation, but allows reasonable classification. Thus, some laws are made to benefit a class of people i.e. women, children, disabled, etc. As the legal maxim Semper specialia generalibus insunt (Special clauses are always comprised in general ones) all acts are slightly but univocally biased towards feminine gender. While they were necessary in those days, many women were constantly abusing these privileges.
PERSPECTIVE OF THE MODERN SOCIETY
In the modern society, people are much aware of their legal rights and benefits. Thanks to the modern technological developments, this has m=been made possible. This may hear good but as we always say, “There are two sides to the same coin”. Many women have
been reported to file fake dowry cases and sexual harassment cases on the men. This needs to curbed in the earlier stage. Gender neutral laws is the first step in this much – needed process. In the modern era, women needed equality and it is safe to say that they have attained it in 99.9% of various diverse fields. Women empowerment can be seen almost everywhere and they are as same as the men in number in teaching, research, administration and so on. Even in the field of law, women are dominating men which is a true sign of equality and empowerment.
GENDER NEUTRAL LAWS
In simple terms, gender neutral laws mean laws that are common to both the gender. While you may think, “Wait? Aren’t all laws gender neutral?”, the answer to that will be yes, but one must understand that it is not the same in all cases. For example, in the earlier IPC
(Indian Penal Code), Section 375 begins: Rape.– A man is said to commit “rape”. The law itself presumes that a man alone will commit rape. This cannot be blamed as it was the case in the earlier age. Women were unaware of their legal rights, thus were abused by some
men. The laws were amended and newly enacted, exclusively for women. One of the notable amendments is the Criminal law Amendment Act, 2013, brought after the Delhi Rape Cases popularly known as the Nirbhaya case. Even with the new BNS (Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita),
the position remains unchanged.
IMPORTANCE OF GENDER-NEUTRAL LAWS
You might have heard the Atul Subhash suicide case. It stirred the society and myself to bring up this heated discussion. Atul Subhash allegedly died by suicide after being pressured to pay Rs 3 crore for a divorce. You might have also heard the R.G. Kar rape and
murder case. In both these cases, a man and a woman is the accused and victim and vice- versa. In the latter case, all the men stood up for the female doctor, conducting protests and peaceful marches and in the former case, almost all women maintained silence. All the feminists showed no concern for the man and some took a stance for the accused wife. Not a single girl is seen on the social media standing for the male victim, while men support victim irrespective of the gender. The common thought that a man will commit a crime and women wont is a stance that needs to be changed from the roots. If the law has been made neutral, at least prompt justice could have been delivered. Men always have been “Guilty until proven innocent”. There has been a long-standing debate on YES, ALL MEN and NOT ALL MEN. The modern society women must understand that the latter expression supersedes the former.
CONCLUSION
The statement NOT ALL MEN, BUT ALWAYS A MAN is no longer relevant. Sex crimes are now prevalent in both the genders. Recently, a 10th std student was sexually abused by a female teacher. Though stringent action was taken, there was no law to protect men. To conclude, Gender neutral laws are the only solution for these issues. While one may argue that women are sexually assaulted by men more in number, “It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer” as expressed by the English jurist William
Blackstone in his seminal work Commentaries on the Laws of England. The special enactments for women and children need not to be removed entirely, but all the rest must be made gender-free.
At the end of the day, it is NOT ALL MEN AND WOMEN, BUT SOME MEN AND WOMEN.
This article is authored by Prathick Kumar, who was among Top 40 performers in the Contract Drafting Quiz competition organized by Lets Learn Law.
