A woman was killed recently for lighting her mother's funeral pyre, allegedly by her own brother. The sarpanch of Mohda village in Raipur district of Chhattisgarh, Geeta Prahlad had to pay a big price for having asserted her right. What a tragic end to a story of true empowerment. Mind you, she was no ordi-nary woman, but an elected sarpanch. But who cares, she is a woman, though! First and last, a woman is a woman, and how dare she do that in this patriarchal society — lighting her mother's pyre?
Having taken up the re-sponsibility of looking after her parents, Geeta had only fulfilled her rightful duty of doing the last rites of her mother. The brother had deserted his mother.
I am now reminded of Sarojamma from Tamil Nadu, who did the same thing, not for her mother but for her father. She led the funeral procession, braving threats from her brothers. She argued that the daughters had cared for their parents and had thus 'inherited' the right to light the funeral pyre. Sarojamma had been working as a sweeper in the bank branch for over two decades, and I got to know her when I was transferred there a few years ago. The moment I entered the premises, it was she who asked me who I was. It was as if she had taken upon herself the re-sponsibility for the safety and security of the branch. She would not let in or tolerate the movement of unknown people in the inner area of the office. I was touched by her question, and my witty reply impressed her. For the next few years, that is, till her retirement, she took such care of me. Her bold attitude, daring and presence made me curious to know more about her. And as in the case of most people from the kind of social stratum she came from, she had many bitter stories to tell. But her narrative was not marked by self-pity. She hailed from a remote village in Villupuram district of Tamil Nadu. There was hardly any sort of work she had not tried her hand at that men of her age would. She could effortlessly climb coconut trees. She was more of a son to her parents. As her broth-er let down the family, it was the sisters who took care of the aged parents. She had not hesitated to walk away with her children on finding her husband betraying her.
I am also reminded of the case of Pinniyakkal that came up before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court a few years ago. At the passing away of her father Pinnathevar of Usilampatti taluk, Pinniyakkal started performing pooja for the goddess Durgai Amman in the local temple as heir to the deceased priest. But that was not to the liking of the male-dominated society. The local tehsildar submitted a report that 89 per cent of the village population did not favour a woman performing pooja. Ultimately the High Court restored her right, with Justice K. Chandru observing that gender-based discrimination cannot be per-mitted. He went on to express his anguish over even public servants falling prey to chauvinistic practices. But Pinniyakkal had to be given police protection to enter the temple. The moment Sarojamma retired from the bank, I found to my dismay and disbelief that a sudden cloud of insecurity and enslavement enveloped her life. A woman who had lit the funeral pyre of her father and who dared to leave her husband and struggle hard to make a honourable living for herself and children, now found herself in a hostile environment. But she told me she would not forsake her in-dependence. Empowerment of women should be the collective responsibility and collective pride of society. The saga of Geeta Prahlad should prove to be a reminder of this.
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