Kusum*

 

The terrific visuals of female foetuses floating in a lake in Udaipur, Rajasthan, (recently shown on a T.V. channel) raise goose bumps. It reminded me of the touching autobiographical sentiments of an unborn female baby (Ajanta E. Chakravarty, Diary of an unborn, 1996, U.B.S. Publishers) “the anaesthetist is getting ready to give you the blessed relief of oblivion. Before you go away, pause for a moment and say good bye, Mother, dearest mother, my own mother. May love bless you and care for you always.... yes, I am now ready for my  journey back to infinity... my mother, may you forgive yourself for not knowing what you have destroyed.”

Gender bias and discrimination against girls is deep rooted in our culture. Birth of a son is an occasion for rejoicing and celebration whereas a daughter’s birth is a disappointment; the “well wishers” sympathise and console the family wishing them, “better luck next time,’’ the proverbial blessing to a newly wed bride is, “may you be the mother of a hundred sons,” in devotional songs the prayer of a childless woman is for a son, not for a child; it irks when bhajans and devotional songs equate the agony of a sonless woman with a married woman (a suhagan) without a husband or with a fish out of water; a mother with sons is glorified and respected in the family whereas one with daughters is treated with indifference. At times a husband and/or his family even seek (unsuccessfully though) divorce from a wife who has not been able to give a son to the family; harassment and torture a sonless wife is not unknown either.

It is significant to note that unwanted female babies were being eliminated even before the advent of pre-natal diagnostic technology. The difference is that earlier they were killed or “put to sleep” soon after birth whereas now it has become possible to be “kind” and eliminate female babies even before they are born. Thus, medical science has connived and facilitated disposal/elimination of unwanted female foetuses; it has invented gadgets and made researches for even pre-conception sex-selection; nor is there any dearth of touts or tantriks luring and blessing couples assuring  birth of a male child.

While our Constitution provides for gender equality and non-discrimination and also prohibits practices derogatory to the dignity of a woman, and the penal code too penalises sex selective abortions, a specific

statute to put a ban on sex selective abortions was enacted by the Maharashtra government in 1988. This Act had territorial as well as other constraints and so was enacted a central law, the Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994. Pursuant to an apex court order in CEHAT (Centre for Enquiry into Health and Allied Themes) v. Union of India (May, 2001) this Act was amended and is now known as Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act. The Act seeks to tackle the issue of female foeticide and sex-selection by banning even pre-conception tests or procedures for purpose of ensuring or increasing  the probability that an embryo will be of a particular sex. Medical advancements in the field of assisted reproduction necessitated such provision. The Act also provides for strict regulation of genetic clinics, laboratories or centres with minimum standards prescribed  in terms of space, equipment and qualification of the staff; for monitoring proper records; for maintaining and also for setting  up of various authorities to ensure effective implementation of the Act. However, despite all laws, female foeticide continues with impunity. Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971 (MTPA) legalises abortion under certain conditions; the nexus between gender selective abortion and a genuine medical termination under the MTPA is difficult to establish. There are innumerable escape routes and ways to circumvent the law. The crux of the entire debate is whether the law alone can eradicate the crime and social evil of female foeticide? The answer is a clear “No’’. The real issue to be addressed is the “why”? Why do couples/mothers avoid a daughter? The most commonly used plea is the financial burden by way of dowry; but isn’t female foeticide known even amongst those for whom dowry may not be a big problem? The factors are numerous-socio-economic-cultural conditions, religious beliefs, customs and traditions, and so on. A son may give hell to his parents in their lifetime but, it is believed that without him there is no salvation. Thus, we need to go deep into the problem and address issues which impel or drive people to resort to female foeticide. Of late, the law makers and courts have played a very positive role by enacting  laws and giving judgments recognising equal rights as well as equal duties of sons and daughters (e.g. equal property rights, equal duties to maintain parents etc). However, where the bias is so entrenched, law alone cannot change the conditions. A ground has to be prepared where females are safe, where guarding their chastity and protection against physical, sexual, moral and economic abuse and exploitation is ensured; and where a female is viewed as an entity with an identity of her own and not a mere chattel or commodity. Before you decide to do away with her, listen to her beseeches, “O soul of my soul, heart of my heart, hear my voice, my cry, my plea. A human being am I just like you, flesh and blood, acting  with emotions, tortured by circumstances... please think once, just once, that I may turn out to be a bouquet of joy, a support, a pillar, a friend in whom you could rejoice time and again and emerge strongly every time. A baby you will be proud to call your own. A child who will hold your hand and walk with you right through the evening of your life. Giving  back all that you gave and so much more.... love me mother listen to me. Please. Do I, the unborn, have no rights?” (Diary of an unborn, Ajanta E. Chakravarty, 1996).