Volume : VIII, Issue : IV, April - 2018

The Right to Life : Female Infanticide and Feticide: An Analysis of India

Sharqua Noori Ansari

Abstract :

Female infanticide and female feticide (the selective abortion of girls in the womb) are significant issues in India. Female infanticide has been a problem for centuries, partly as a result of the patriarchal nature of Indian society. Female infanticide is the deliberate killing of girl babies. It is also described as gender–selective killing or "gendercide". The phenomenon of female infanticide is as old as many cultures, and has likely accounted for millions of genders elective deaths throughout history. Female feticide and female infanticide are common social problems in India creating a serious gender imbalance in the country. Women who constitute half a human population have been discriminated, harassed and exploited irrespective of the country to which they belong, unmindful of the religion which they profess and oblivious of the timeframe in which they live. Everywhere women are confronted with many challenges.The sex selection techniques are providing ample opportunity to the female feticide and socio–economic problems are providing opportunity of female infanticide. Even though the law is a powerful instrument of social change yet law alone cannot root out this social problem. Crime again women is an issue of national shame. Female feticide is perhaps one of the worst forms of violence against women where a woman is denied her most basic and fundamental right i.e. “the right to life”. Sex selective abortions and increase in the number of female infanticide cases have become a significant social phenomenon in several parts of India. Ittranscends all castes, class and communities and even the North South dichotomy.The girl children become target of attack even before they are born. This paper theoretically analyses the magnitude of the incidence of female feticide and infanticide in an analysis ofIndia.

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Article: Download PDF   DOI : 10.36106/ijar  

Cite This Article:

Sharqua Noori Ansari, The Right to Life : Female Infanticide and Feticide: An Analysis of India, INDIAN JOURNAL OF APPLIED RESEARCH : Volume-8 | Issue-4 | April-2018

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