Justice Beyond Gender

A documentary screening cum panel discussion on section 498A was organised by the school of social work, St. Joseph's College (Autonomous), Bengaluru in association with Purush Adhikar Sangh, represented by Mr. Vivek Deveshwar, on the 11th of April, 2022. Students from all batches of the school of social work attended the programme. Dr. Fr. Agustine Lourdu, Dean, School of Social Work, welcomed the gathering. The documentary screened was titled- 'Martyrs of Marriage', directed by award winning director Ms. Deepika Narayan Bharadwaj. The documentary highlighted the features as well as many case studies that show the wide-scale misuse of this section of the law resulting in the suicide of a number of men along with the imprisonment of millions of innocent family members. The documentary was an eye-opener for many. The screening was followed by a virtual address by the Director. Dr. Mary Princess Lavanya from the school of social work, introduced the director to the gathering. As part of the Q & A session, Ms. Bharadwaj shared her experience of working on such issues along with the challenges associated with it such as the backlash from feminist groups. Later, there was a panel discussion on the matter with Ms. Tanya (name changed) who along with her brother have been facing false accusations under 498A and are fighting for justice. The programme concluded at around 3:30 PM with the vote of thanks by Dr. S. Rama Gokula Krishnan, the faculty co-ordinator of the programme. An anonymous feedback survey revealed that majority (73.7 per cent) of the students have rated it as 'excellent' apart from several positive comments, highlighting the success of the programme.