29

Jun

When women in uniform speak, society must listen

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Amitabh Srivastava 

New Delhi I Monday I June 29, 2026

So engrossed are these nameless women in the police organisations protectimg our lives and dignity day in and day out that they seen to have lost their tongue in the process.

That does not mean they are dumb.

In one of a kind programs of its kind last week, the Indian Police Foundation gave them a chance to speak out at a program specifically called,”Presence of women workforce in Police Organisations at Subordinate ranks in India”.

On stage were the (well intentioned bosses) including GK Pillai former Home Secretary, Amod K Kanth former DGP and Founder and Mentor of NGO Prayas,Nuzhat Hassan former DG Homeguards, SP Singh Treasurer of IPF and PC Jain COO of IPF who opened the ‘can of worms’,so to say.

The proceedings began with an address by GK Pillai who lauded his batch mate of 1972, Kiran Bedi for refusing to get into the IAS or IFS when offered by the UPSC, because she did not seek any favours.

“I know there are issues of toilets for women and changing rooms etc. but I will handle it.” We all know what Kiran Bedi has been doing since then.

Amod K Kanth, who takes pride in being gender neutral in his dealings in Prayas said he was not getting into the debate of wherher women needed 33 per cent or 50 per cent reservation or why they are still less than 13 per cent, because for organisations like Prayas the women police were the mainstream.

“Since Prayas deals mostly with children and women it's the women police who we are mostly dependent on for the last 38 years. I am happy that now special women helplines have been launched in many parts of the country known as Bharosa” he said amidst cheers.

This was enough food (actually breakfast) for the audience comprising a majorly of women from the Delhi Police, BSF, BPRD, CISF and CRPF etc at the seminar.

The real session began after breakfast when the women were asked to speak out about their problems in performing their duties(if any).

It started with general comments about the fallout of patriarchy, narrow mindsets in villages but soon the issues spoken went beyond women toilets and creche that speakers like Pillai felt were most urgent for any civilised society.

One officer mentioned how a junior police officer wept inconsolably whe she was given a posting with male colleagues in the night shift. She felt it could break her marriage but finally she is okay with it.

Another said when she started driving a scooty in her village in Haryana the boys stared at her and rode along with her asking ‘Kis Chakki ka atta khati Hai.”.But now she had adjusted to it and it was okay.

But it was not okay.

The most revealing was the comment of one lady when Mr Pillai declared that after noticing the phenomenon of women complainants under POSH whether in police, judiciary or Corporates invariably resigning even when their complaints were found correct, a new law had been formulated that if any complainant resigned the HR head would also be asked to resign.

Instead of cheering him the hall was totally silent.Till a woman commented that even since this came into force the corporates had stopped recruiting women.

That same fear seems to be haunting women across all spectrums. The more we ask for special favour the more we become targetted.

As recent court hearings about three day menstrual leave desired by feminists show, the arguments against recruiting women drown out any reasonable debate to find a middle way,

As far as this seminar was concerned it would seem that most women speaking their mind before the high ranking officials thought they were trying to emulate the example of Kuran Bedi highlighted by Mr Pillai. But it was a pathetic attempt to hide their insecurities.

The media is equally responsible in projecting this image of women police being invincible through films like Delhi Crime although many may not be aware that the script of the first part of Delhi Crime dealing with the Nirbhaya case was approved by former Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar.

In fact one of the highlights of this question answer session was women saying that men should be given the same facilities like women during matrimonial leave so that they also feel responsible and equal participants.

More than one woman participant said that when they took maternity leave their male colleagues grumbled that they would now have to perform double duty.

It was as if they were replacing the women and that feeling bred animosity among colleagues who under normal clrcumstances were facing the same challenges in their work profile.

Those who have been in the social work assert that this is a new development as far as women in the police forces is cocerned.

Not too far back (about a decade back) women police officers at the highest rank were articulating the discrimination against women, beginning with the selection process itself including tough physical tests and of course the very important issue of lack of women toilets.

Talk to women in any office or household in Delhi today and they would tell you that despite the national campaign to build toilets women even today lack this facility when they need it urgently.

So today when women police in ‘subordinate roles’ try to put up a brave show at the India International Centre before their officers its a facade that cannot be taken at face value.

(Mr Amitabh Srivastava is a senior journalist and social activist)

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