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The majority of women, those who live in families of little or no property, will clearly not benet by this provision. Apart from several anomalies in the law, what the continuing debate on the changes in such laws emphasises repeatedly is that laws alone do not, and indeed cannot, address the inherent inequality of womens status. Marriages, some say, are made in heaven but on earth it is an institution that is essentially unequal. Therefore, irrespective of special protective provisions, such as the woman having the right to refuse a divorce on these grounds if she fears she will be left without adequate nancial support, women will continue to be disadvantaged. In any case, as far as poor women are concerned, the only reality for them is desertion, not divorce, and there is no question of alimony or compensation. Even for women with some income and a profession, these new grounds will not necessarily guarantee them an equitable share of property and nancial resources. For although the law enables women who want to walk out of an abusive or violent marriage to get a divorce without having to go through protracted legal battles, there is no guarantee that the decisions about compensation or alimony will be quick or even fair. Lawyers handling such cases point out that not only is it virtually impossible to establish precisely how much the husband earns or the extent of his nances, but that even after nancial compensation is settled, getting delivery of this amount becomes another major battle often fought in court. In the nal analysis, such incremental changes in the law, to make them more sensitive to womens rights and requirements, might be inadequate but they are a step forward. Despite the shortcomings, and many of them will continue to be debated even after these laws come into force, the very fact that they exist on the statute is decidedly a plus. That these changes are the result of pressure from below, most often by womens groups who have campaigned for them, is also a positive point. Stronger laws empower those ghting for womens equality with legitimate grounds to demand womens entitlements. Yet, making laws work for women is never easy. Changing laws is only one small step. The far more challenging and difcult task is to ensure that they are implemented. Just as the impetus to change laws has come from civil society, inevitably the burden of ensuring their implementation also rests on the shoulders of groups outside government. Without this kind of impetus from below, even good laws are reduced to little more than a decoration on the statute, to be used by those who want to boast about their concern for women and their rights.
september 14, 2013 vol xlviII no 37
EPW Economic & Political Weekly