LUCKNOW: Women may have been referred to as the ‘second sex’ but they are no longer willing to accept their status as secondary citizens. On the eve of the ‘International Day Against Violence Against Women’ (November 25) members of several non-governmental organisations of UP joined hands to vociferously pressed for the demand for ‘Puri Nagrik, Pure Haq’ (Complete citizens, total rights). The campaign will be carried out between November 25 and December 18 and the primary aim of this campaign is political empowerment of women in a state where politics has a distinct ovetone of male chauvinism. Jashodhara, a social activist said that when it comes to elections, suddenly the politicians wake up to the fact that 50 per cent of their voters are women. However, when it comes to addressing issues like equal rights for women these are considered ‘soft issues’ and fall on the blind spot of a blinkered polity. In 1993, the Centre gave Constitutional ratification to the convention on the elimination of discrimination against women but even after ten years, this has turned out to be an empty promise. Women’s organisations are questioning why 40,000 women die every year due to failure of maternal health services or why dalit women are forcibly prevented from filing FIRs? Why the state’s machinery and even society is completely insensitive and oblivious of gender issues. Why women are punished for exercising their legitimate right to choose their life partner? Activist Arundhati said that given the attitude of the officials for a traumatised victim of rape registering an FIR is like subjecting the victim to mental molestation. Callous policemen deliberately misinterpret the law and the complaint of the victim, particularly in rural areas. To keep up the pretence of low crime rate even the colloquial euphemisms and references to rape by these women is often mis-reported as eve-teasing. Feminist voices not new to India LUCKNOW: Feminism is not new to India. Feminist voices against male hegemony could be heard in Indian literature since mid-19th century, with demands of equal rights, right to marriage of choice, re-marriage and even divorce. Tara Bai Shinde’s novel Stree Purush Tulna (1882) can be considered as first critique of male reformist. These facts came to light in a workshop on “Feminism and Indian Literary History�, organised by the Institute of Women Studies at Lucknow University, on Monday. Kumkum Sangari, department of English, Delhi University, said, “It was a misconception to consider that history was domain of ‘facts’ and literature a domain of ‘imagination’. History writers have put imagination in their writings and literature also represents the fact of the society.� Shinde’s Stree Purush Tulna has depicted life of a Brahmin widow, Vijay Lakshmi, who killed her son and was punished. Through the character of her novel, Tara Bai demanded a code of conduct for both men and women and right of widow re-marriage. She was opposed by the prominent personalities of her time and only social reformist Jyotiba Phule came for her support, she said. Writer Veerandra Yadav, delve at length on depiction of women in Indian literature. “Simanti Uddesh (1882) written by an anonymous woman and Ban Prasoon (1882), a bangla novel question religious scriptures which suggest subjugation of women,� he said.