KOCHI: The Kerala High Court has suggested that new legislation being drafted by the state government to protect women in workplaces, in the wake of shocking revelations in the Justice Hema Committee report, should also address the issue of intersectionality to address multi-layered discrimination faced by women.
“Although we have tackled to some extent discrimination in specific areas like caste, gender, and sex, intersectionality has not been addressed in any of the legislation. That is one area in which we need to be pioneers. This is likely to be the first-of-its-kind legislation by any state. Intersectionality means discrimination on multiple levels.
For example, a Dalit woman faces discrimination not only because she is a woman but also due to her social status. She may be subjected to sexual violence, which is terrible in itself. However, when she approaches law enforcement agencies, she faces further discrimination because of her social status...
Those kinds of issues should be addressed in the new legislation,” the division bench, comprising Justices Jayasankaran Nambiar and C S Sudha, said.
The court made the remarks while considering petitions linked to the Hema panel report. Besides intersectionality, everything related to women should be addressed. For instance, economic inequality, the bench said.
When the petitions came up for hearing, the state government said the special investigation team (SIT), probing complaints based on the Hema report, has received eight more complaints from victims. Five of these have been registered as FIRs. Investigation into the 35 cases already registered by the SIT is progressing, and a report has been filed, the court was informed.