We are in total agreement that polygamy should be abolished for all communities. But this can't be done without dealing with the UCC. And it can't be done by fiat (btw, FYI, the PM doesn't pass laws, Parliament does with the President's assent, but in this non-representative Parliament bad laws get passed), it has to be done by taking key minority representatives on board in a spirit of consultative cooperation. Otherwise we become a. dictatorship of the majority community.
One correction on RR Roy and Sati: please do read his essay giving statistics of Sati prevalent in different Indian states in his time. It was much more prevalent in Bengal than in UP or Punjab. It's root was the Hindu hypergamy code, which led to the practice of child marriage and multiple wives of the Kulin Brahmins (not a 'mythical' community of a mythic era), it's purpose was to takeover and consolidate land holdings of the deceased males and stridhan of the hapless widows. Hence the greatest opposition to Roy was from some members of his own community who relentlessly hounded him (a non-Kulin) and used the legal system to file endless court cases against him. I have not studied the political and legal lead-up to the framing of the law banning Sati. Such documentary evidence on reprehensible social customs of the majority community isn't much publicised in India. And voluntary Sati persists in pockets like Rajasthan.
Joya Roy
On Mon, 16 Mar 2020, 20:38 Anand Gangoli, <anandgangoli22@gmail.com> wrote:
What is important at this stage is to decide whether or not India
should pass a law prohibiting Polygamy. It is immaterial whether some
king in Hindu Mythology had 3 wives or 15, or whether some saint or
prophet more than a thousand years ago had 4 wives or 13. Nor is it
material whether our PM worships a red idol or a black stone. What is
important is that he is the elected Prime Minister and has every right
to make laws that are beneficial to India. I believe that polygamy is
bad, and banning it would be beneficial to India. For many reasons.
Population growth is one, the other is from the perspective of human
rights-polygamy goes against the concept of equality between men and
women. I am sure there would be others. Therefore I am very clear that
our PM must make a laws abolishing Polygamy.
Just to set the records straight with respect Joya Royji's email of
15th. The campaign for abolishing sati was led by Raja Ram Mohan Roy-
no one can take any credit away from him for uprooting this heinous
practice. I should have mentioned his name in my earlier e mail.
Apologies. But there was a lot of opposition to his proposal from the
Hindu community. In spite of the opposition, Lord William Bentinck
passed a law abolishing Sati in 1829. This is one few good things
that the British did for us.
Coming to the subject of untouchability. Joya Royji has vastly
exaggerated the problem of untouchability as it exists in the present
time. Central and state governments do not discriminate when it comes
to giving employment in government services. In fact they are giving
increased opportunity for employment. There are punitive laws that
discourage the practice of untouchability. All air travellers know
that the cabin crew that serves refreshment on flight can be from any
caste. The public sector Airline give preference to SC/ST candidate. I
have never seen any passenger asking the cabin crew for his/her caste.
If anyone were to do so, I am sure the Captain would be well within
his/her rights to offload him. The same goes for any hotel/restaurant
. Does anyone ask the waiter or a barber in a saloon what his caste
is? Does anyone dare ask someone sporting a moustache or driving a car
( not easy to find anyone sitting on a horse these days !) what his
caste is? The credit for this improvement should go to all governments
who have held power since our independence.
I hope most of us agree. Polygamy is bad and must go.
Jai Hind
Anand Gangoli
On Mon, Mar 16, 2020 at 3:09 PM Anand Gangoli <anandgangoli22@gmail.com> wrote:
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