Socio-Religious Reform Movement: General Features

    Socio-Religious Reform Movement: General Features

  • Influenced by Raja Rammohan Roy, the government declared the practice of Sati illegal and punishable by criminal courts as culpable homicide.
    • The regulation of 1829 was applicable in the first instance to Bengal presidency alone but was extended in slightly modified forms to Madras and Bombay presidencies in 1830.
  • The Bengal regulations of 1795 and 1804 declared infanticide illegal and equivalent to murder. 
    • An act passed in 1870 made it compulsory for parents    to register the birth of all babies and provided for verification of female children for some years after birth, particularly in areas where the custom of female infanticide was resorted to in utmost secrecy.
  • Due to the efforts of Pandit Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar ( principal of Sanskrit college Calcutta ), the Hindu Widows Remarriage act, 1856 was passed. 
    • It legalised marriage of widows and declared issues from such marriage as legitimate. 
    • Brahmo samaj had the issue of Widow remarriage high on its agenda and did much to popularise it.
    • Vishnu Shastri Pandit founded the widow remarriage association in the 1850s.
  • The relentless effort of a Parsi reformer, B.M.Malabari, were rewarded by enactment of the Age of Consent Act(1891).
    • It fobade the marriage of girls below the age of 12. 
    • The Sarda Act (1930) further pushed up the marriage age to 18 and 14 for boys and girls respectively. 
    • In free India, the Child Marriage Restraint (Amendment) Act, 1978 raised the age of Marriage for girls from 15 to 18 and for boys from 18 to 21.
  • Sarla devi Chaudharani convened the first meeting of Bhatiya Stree Mahamandal in Allahabad.
    • It is considered as the first major Indian Organisation set up by women. 
    • Its objectives are promotion of education for women, abolition of the purdah system, and improvement in the socio-economic and political status of women all over India.
  • Ramabai Ranade founded the Ladies Social Conference ( Bhartiya Mahila parishad) under the parent organisation National Social Conference, in 1904 in Bombay. 
  • Pandita Ramabai Saraswati founded the Arya Mahila Samaj to serve the cause of women.
    • Due to his efforts medical education for women started in Lady Dufferin College. 
    • Later Ramabai Ranade established a branch of Arya Mahila Samaj in Bombay.
  • In 1925, the National Council of Women in India, a branch of the International Council for Women , was formed. 
    • Mehribai Tata played an important role in its formation and advancement.
  • The All India Women’s Conference, founded by Margaret cousins in 1927. 
    • It worked toward various legislative reforms before and after India’s independence. 
    • Ex:- Sarda Act(1929), Hindu women right to property act(1937), Factory act(1947), Special marriage act(1954) etc. 
  • Factors that helped to mitigate the Caste-based Discrimination. 
    • The creation of private property in land and free sale of land upset caste equation. 
    • Modern commerce and industry gave rise to several economic avenues. 
    • British administration introduced the concept of equality before law in a uniformly applied system of law which dealt a severe blow to social and legal inequalities. 
    • Judicial function of panchayats taken away. 
    • The administrative services were made open to all castes and the new education system was totally on secular lines.
  • In 1932 Gandhi founded the All India Harijan Sangh.
  • Babasaheb Ambedkar organised the All India Scheduled Caste Federation.
  • The Struggle of the depressed classes led to the provision of special representation for these classes in the Government Of India Act, 1935.
  • Sri Narayan Guru coined the slogan “One religion, one caste, one God for Mankind”.
    • His disciple Sahadaran Ayyapan changed this slogan into “no religion, no caste, no God for mankind”.
  • Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar led the Mahad Satyagraha in March 1927 to challenge the regressive customs of the caste in Hindus.
  • Dr Ambedkar established the Bahishkrit Hitkarini Sabha in 1924 to highlight the difficulties and grievances of the Dalits before the government.
    • Its motto was : ‘ Educate, Agitate, and Organise’.

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