SPECIAL ARTICLE Gender-based Crime and Gender Inequality in India A Subnational Analysis Paribhasha Sharma This study, using health, empowerment and labour ender-based crime, particularly sexual violence in market metrics, reviews gender inequality and India has captured national and international attention. The rising graph of various gender-based crimes gender-based crimes in India at the subnational level. G (National Crime Records Bureau 2011) poses a serious ques- The findings show that gender-based crime rates have tion on the safety of women and girls at homes as well as grown while general crime rates have decreased over in public spaces. According to the National Crime Records the years. Further, the distribution of states by the Bureau (hereafter, NCRB), the rate of total crime in 2011 reported a decrease by 7.4% while that against women gender inequality index does not follow a pattern. States increased by 7.1% over 2010. Incidents like the Park Street with low and high GII show similar average rates for rape in Kolkata,1 Nirbhaya gang rape2 in New Delhi and gender-based crimes while moderate GII states show the Shakti Mills gang rape3 in Mumbai have created headlines in highest average rates for gender-based crimes. The the last two years and remain afresh in public memory. The Nirbhaya case which involved the brutal gang rape and death growth rates for gender-based crimes, however, are of a college student in Delhi (rechristened Nirbhaya by the lowest for low GII states but continue to be the highest media) generated nationwide protest and called for reforms for moderate GII states. in rape laws. Baxi (2014) observes that the Nirbhaya case brought sexual violence against women, which had largely remained confi ned to feminists and queer movements, to the public discourse. The examples stated above show that such violence is wide- spread and takes multiple forms. It happens at home, on the streets, in schools, colleges, at workplace, during confl ict (ethnic or wars) and in time of peace. It is most apparent as domestic and sexual violence. But there are less visible forms of gender-based violence like female foeticide and infanticide, child marriage, female genital mutilation, honour killing and other forms. Gender-based violence against women and girls prevents them from living a life of dignity without any fear, violates their fundamental human rights and restricts them from achieving their full potential. Sen (1985) thus sees pro- tection from violence or crime4 as one of the capabilities that contribute to the quality of life. Gender inequality has been consistently cited as an underly- ing determinant of violence against women. Feminists have long argued that inequality between men and women on the basis of their gender leads to such gendered violence (Bograd 1988; Yodanis 2004; Ellsberg 2006). Violence against women as a manifestation of historically unequal power relations The author is grateful to an anonymous referee and to Annapurna Shaw between men and women was also an important point of for valuable suggestions that helped improve the paper. The author observation by the United Nations General Assembly, in its also thanks her colleagues (Debarati Basu, Srujana Pinjala, Sankalpa 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Satapathy and Ambuj Anand) at the Indian Institute of Management Women (Wall 2014). With this understanding, international Calcutta for their insights that helped shape the paper. organisations like World Health Organization (hereafter, Paribhasha Sharma ([email protected]) is a doctoral student WHO) have focused on promoting gender equality as a critical at the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta. preventive measure against gendered violence (WHO 2009). 48 NOVEMBER 7, 2015 vol l no 45 EPW Economic & Political Weekly SPECIAL ARTICLE However, academic evidence on the association between sexual or psychological violence against women either inside gender inequality and violence against women remains incon- or outside home and family. According to Ellsberg and Heise clusive. While some empirical studies fi nd a positive relation- (2005), there is increasing international consensus that the ship (backlash hypothesis; Gartner et al 1990; Whaley and abuse of women and girls, regardless of where it occurs, Messner 2002), some fi nd a negative relationship (see amelio- should be considered as gender-based violence, as it largely rative hypothesis; Bailey and Peterson 1995) and some others stems from women’s subordinate status in society with fi nd no signifi cant relationship (Brewer and Smith 1995; Lee regard to men. This subordinate status refl ects gender and Stevenson 2006). The lack of clear and defi nite conclu- inequality, which is a universal phenomenon in most of the sions about different aspects of gender inequality and differ- societies of the world. In simple terms, it means unequal per- ent kinds of gender-based violence indicate the need for more ceptions or treatments meted out to men and women based research, especially of the societal level factors (Wall 2014). on their gender. Literature on this association has also remained limited in Gender inequality and gender-based violence against women India (Dalal 2011; Sabarwal et al 2013). This analysis seeks to share a complex relationship. According to the WHO and the fi ll this gap by analysing the association between gender United Nations, domestic and other forms of gender-based inequality and crime against women in India in a bid to identify violence are inextricably linked to each other and are the key whether equality can be a policy response to reducing gen- obstacles to gender equality; the lack of which increases the dered violence in India. risk of violence by men against women and inhibits the Though gender-based violence encompasses violence ability of those affected to seek protection (Smit 2012). Watts against all gender, this paper is focused on women. So, for the and Zimmerman (2002) contend that violence against women purpose of the present study, gender-based violence is defi ned is not only an expression of gender inequality but also helps as crime against women (hereafter, CAW) particularly. The maintain this power imbalance. It manifests as a vicious present study is based on analysis of secondary data from the loop where women do not challenge the power imbalance (out annual reports of NCRB. Data on reported incidences of CAW in of fear), and this unequal status increases their vulnerability India for the period 1995–2012 is analysed. United Nations to violence, which in turn fuels the violence perpetrated Development Programme’s (hereafter, UNDP) gender inequality against them. index (hereafter, GII) is reconstructed for the 15 large states of Feminist theory is the dominant model for explaining gen- India.5 The aim is to examine whether (a) gender inequality is der-based violence (Gelles 1993). It contends that gender- associated with CAW and (b) the association, if any, differs based violence is rooted in gender inequality at the societal across diverse Indian states. level (Bograd 1988; Ellsberg 2006). One feminist approach, The fi ndings show that at the national level, CAW is rising namely ameliorative hypothesis (Whaley and Messner 2002), while all India total crime rate is declining. CAW consistently rises argues that gender-based violence against women can be during the period of analysis (1995–2012). At the subnational reduced by eliminating patriarchy, enhancing women’s socio- level, the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Kerala rank lower economic status and increasing gender equality. Thus, females’ on GII indicating lower gender inequality in the south than all access to education, employment, income and legal assistance other regions of the country. It is also found that the states may lead to a reduction in female victimisation (Straus 1994; with moderate GII have the highest rate of reported CAW while Baron and Straus 1987; Peterson and Bailey 1992; Bailey the states in low and high GII category do not differ much in and Peterson 1995; Vieraitis et al 2007). The other feminist CAW rates. This indicates that changing gender inequality is approach, backlash hypothesis (Brownmiller 1975; Russell 1975; unrelated to the existing level of CAW but plays a key role in Williams and Holmes 1981) counters ameliorative hypothesis controlling the growth rate of CAW. The moderate group how- with the argument that uplifted female socio-economic and ever, remains an anomaly as despite being better on GII, it has gender equality statuses escalate violence against them rather the highest CAW rate. Overall, the results show that reducing than reducing it (Gartner et al 1990; Vieraitis and Williams gender inequality has a positive association with decreasing 2002; DeWees and Parker 2003; Iyer et al 2011). Some research CAW growth rates. does not align with either of the feminist approach and shows The rest of the paper is organised as follows. Section 1 no signifi cant relationship (Brewer and Smith 1995; Lee and reviews the literature on gender-based violence and gender Stevenson 2006). inequality. This is helpful in understanding the relationships In the Indian context, Dreze and Khera (2000) hint at a examined. Section 2 discusses data and methodology adopted strong link between gender relations and criminal violence for the study. The fi ndings of the study are detailed in Section 3. (including violence against women). They fi nd that areas of Section 4 concludes the paper. high violence are associated with high gender inequalities. In another study on the relationship between rural women’s 1 Gender Inequality and Violence: Complex Relationship autonomy and risk of marital violence in India, Sabarwal, Gender-based violence, despite being a pervasive pheno- Santhya and Jejeebhoy (2013) fi nd mixed results. According to menon, is one of the most ignored and normalised form their results, women’s fi nancial autonomy reduces the risk of of abuse, affecting lives of millions of women and girls marital violence in more gender equitable settings of south (Bhatla 2012).