Taraji’s Saathiship
Nivedita Seerpi
Neetu Jain
AID-Austin
Taraji
• Social activist based in Bhilwada dist,
Rajasthan
• Working with women’s issues in this area
since the past 25 yrs
Bhilwada
• Name originated from the high population of
Bhils (tribals) in the area
• Predominantly agricultural, also famous for its
textile industry
• Caste-based society
• Lack of education
• Lack of awareness about basic rights
Women’s Issues
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Domestic Violence
Female feticides
Dowry problems
Sexual harassment
Unsafe schools for girls
Rape
Caste-based atrocities
Witch-hunting
Taraji
• Based in Bhilwada for last 25 years
• Bachelors in Psychology and Masters in Social
Work from Udaipur (specialization in labor
welfare)
• Started working in 1986 with Women’s
Development Program (WDP)
• Has been associated with Bal Evam Mahila
Chetana Samiti since 1994
How she came to be involved with
women’s issues…..
• WDP was a ~10 year (1986-95) UNICEF funded
project
• This was a state-run program, with NGO
participation
• Taraji worked in the NGO end
• Program mainly dealt with rural women –
educating them about their basic rights, thus
empowering them to stand up for themselves
Women’s Development Program
(WDP)
• Gender sensitization
• Encouraging women to send their children to
school
• Created awareness about Govt. schemes in the
area that women could avail of
• Created strong female resource- “Saathin” in a
number of zillas (6?) in Rajasthan-1 Saathin from
each panchayat
• The Saathins were trained and empowered to
help with women’s issues in their home
community
WDP contd.
• Monthly bulletin – “Saathinro Kaagaz” to disseminate
information among saathins
• Saathins were trained by Trainers during a month long
training camp
• Trainers had undergone a 6 month training to prepare
them to train the Saathins
• WDP was a huge success
• At the end of the 10 year funding cycle, UNICEF handed
over funding responsibility to the State
• State plead financial constraints and stopped the
project
Involvement after WDP
• After WDP stopped, women still kept
approaching Taraji with their problems
• Paraphrasing Taraji “institutional relationships
had changed to personal relationships”
• She felt responsible towards these women, and
stayed connected with them in an individual
capacity and via the Bal Evam Mahila Chetana
Samiti
• Focus thus shifted from rural women-centric
issues to more general women’s issues
Taraji’s involvement and strategies
• Securing justice for victims with police, judicial and administrative
means
• Counseling families when women wanted compromise
• Approached jati panchayats and got them to support women who
were victims of caste based violence like witch hunting and nathapratha (??)
• Used village meetings as a form of pressure on families and
communities
• Used rallies and dharnas to pressurize the administration and
police.
• Rehabilitated several victims who wanted to live independently.
• Several times, she has victims staying with her as temporary and
immediate relief
Her work with women’s issues
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Dowry, domestic violence victims
Sexual harassment victims
Work with “Witch-hunting” victims
Natha-pratha victims
Fight against female feticide
Shelter for women
Self-defense training for women
Female Feticide
• Gender imbalance in the community
• Large number of unmarried men in the community
• Taraji sent out a basic survey to Sonography clinics in
the area
• Realized clinics were disclosing the gender of the fetus
• Doctors facilitating female feticide
• Direct violation of the Pre-conception and Pre-natal
Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) Act
1994 (PCPNDT Act)
Female Feticide
• Initially Taraji tried to educate the doctors who
feigned ignorance about this Act- she held
seminars/legal workshops for Sonologists
• She then realized that doctors were knowingly
flouting the law
• She called upon the National Inspection &
Monitoring Committee
• NIMC raided these clinics, and many clinics were
cited and 3 were caught red-handed and closed
down
Female Feticide
• But, Chief Medical Health Officer works handin-glove with these clinics
• He was instrumental in re-opening the clinics
• Taraji took these clinics to court, these are
land-mark cases in Rajastan
• She is confident that justice will prevail
Witch-hunting
• Poor, widowed, crippled/unattractive women are
branded “dayan”/witches by influential
men/women in the community
• These women are chased out of their village,
physically assaulted, some are disrobed and
paraded in the village, a couple of women were
hacked into pieces
• Usually a ploy to snatch the victim’s
land/property, sometimes family members
initiate such campaigns
Legal recourse…or the lack thereof
• Witch-hunt perpetrators are not even cited for basic
offense –like physical assault- for their crimes
• Police books people for slapping someone, but not for
witch-hunting
• No laws to address such grievous harm
• Taraji is working to have witch-hunting categorized as a
crime that is a “threat to life”
• Taraji worked with Jagori, a prominent Delhi-based
NGO to document cases of witch-hunting
• She researched many cases and has ~25 case-studies in
this book
Dayan Virodhi Act
• Taraji worked with National Women’s
Commission to highlight the plight of witchhunting victims
• She took 10 victims to a seminar in Jaipur, so
they could speak about their experiences
• Govt. of Rajasthan has drafted “Dayan Virodhi
Act”
Book on Witch-hunting
• Taraji’s book will be released shortly
• She hopes to have prominent people from the
Human Rights Commission, National Women’s
Comission, senior police and administrative
officers attend this release
• Most importantly, she hopes to have a few
victims there to highlight their plight
Role of Jati-panchayats
• These panchayats are the only recourse in
witch-hunting cases
• JP members are relatively better
educated/aware
• People on the wrong end of the JP are socially
ostracized/cut-off
• Taraji has had to appeal to Jati-panchayats
regarding these cases, with some success
Natha-pratha
• Social custom seen in some communities, so-called
“lower castes” (Jat, Gujjar etc. –Natayat Kul)
• Women are given away in “natha” to other men for a
price (Jagda) by their husband or partner
• Parents can also claim a kind of jagda called
“maiyak” by giving their daughter away
Natha-pratha
• Has advantages and disadvantages for lower-caste
women
• This is a social custom, hence not bound by legality
• Therefore no legal recourse, police refuse to get
involved
• Basically, this is socially-accepted sale and
enslavement of women
• Again, Jati-panchayats are the only available court of
appeal
Natha-pratha
• Contributes/creates other social problems like
“gailad” sons, Atta-satta
• Women are seen as a commodity that can be bought
and sold
• Socially, a woman’s worth is set on the number of
times she has been given away on “natha” (therefore
women are likely to stay in extremely abusive
conditions because they do not want to be given
away in “natha” one more time)
• Health concerns like spread of STDs and HIV
Taraji’s Saathiship
• Will basically enable her to continue working
with the same women and with same issues
that she is currently involved with
• Our assistance will merely make the financial
aspect a little easier
• She can actually compensate people who have
worked with her for free for many years
Taraji’s plans- Short-term goals
• “Sangharshsheel Mahila Mela: I have handled cases
of women who are victims and survivors of different
forms of violence. I would like to organize a mela
inviting about 200 women who have fought brave
struggles to provide a platform for collective strength
to emerge. The mela can build solidarity and help in
identifying women who can take this work
forward. These women will be honored and a team
of lawyers and sensitive police officers will also be
honored.”
Short Stay Home
• “Short Stay home for women: In police records,
Bhilwada stands out as a place where many women
face violence. But this city does not have a short stay
home to provide safe and short shelter for women.
Working in this area, I always find this an issue. In the
past I have provided shelter for women in my own
home. I would like to run a short stay home and
register as a service provider for Domestic Violence
Act. “
Income generation
• “Income Generation for rehabilitated women : I have
rehabilitated several women in Bhilwada in the past and most
of them work as domestic maids. They were trained to be
domestic maids by us as they were so new to this arena. Being
associated with the organization, these women feel lot more
secure physically.
• Now I would also like to think of some income generating
schemes for these women. Eg.: running a mobile atta-chakki,
tiffin center at labor addas etc. after identifying the local
needs. ”
Institutionalizing her efforts
• “Institutionalizing work and running an office: I
would like to form a team and run an office to
regularize/formalize my work.”
• Document some case studies highlighting struggles
of women who have approached her and fought for
their rights
• Release her book on “Witch-hunting in Bhilwada”
soon, hopes to pay for travel expenses for some
victims, so victims can speak at this event
Other efforts
• Organize self-defence classes (venledo) for
young girls in high schools
• Continue the fight against institutionalized
female feticide and increase awareness in
public
Saathiship
• Rs. 20,000 per month X 12 months = 2.4 lakh