A reform that challenged centuries of silence

Marking a new chapter in women’s rights in the subcontinent, on July 16, 1856, the Hindu Widows’ Re-marriage Act came into force in British India. For the first time, law granted Hindu widows the right to remarry.

Before this Act came into place, it was acceptable for a widower to re-marry, but the idea was a taboo for women. Even a man willing to marry a widow was looked down upon. This was a time when orthodox Hindu leaders determined most societal norms.

Widows, many of whom were still teenagers and children, were forced to lead lives of renunciation and suffering. Besides denying them education, the social authorities would shame them into seclusion and even subject them to immense physical and emotional abuse.

Committed to favour justice and compassion over superstition, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar started a social movement against the orthodox practice that prevented widows from remarrying.

A Bengali social reformer and educator, he lobbied with the British authoritiesand submitted petitions to the East India Company’s Legislative Council. His campaign met with sharp opposition. Many orthodox Hindu leaders saw the idea as a violation of religious order. But he continued his struggle despite public protests and threats. He even oversaw the first few widow remarriages in Bengal personally. The movement eventually culminated in the Hindu Widows’ Re-marriage Act, 1856.

The new law stated that any Hindu widow could re-marry without forfeiting her rights, and any offspring from such a marriage would be considered legitimate. However, the Act required the widow to forfeit her deceased husband’s property upon re-marriage, reflecting the prevailing attitudes around inheritance and female autonomy.

As the Indian society of that time was rooted in superstitions and gender-based prejudices, despite the law, it would be a long battle before widow re-marriage became socially acceptable. Although the law could not instantly change society, it cracked open a door that had long been bolted shut. It laid the groundwork for a broader reformist movement that would grow stronger in the decades to come. For women trapped in oppressive social structures, it offered hope – however limited – of a second chance at life.

July 16, 1856, marks one of the initial milestones in widows’ rights in the country’s modern history. The day also reflects the courage of reformers like Vidyasagar, who, despite being rooted in tradition, dared to re-interpret it in favour of justice and equality. In a societythat saw women as mere extension of men in their lives, the Act of 1856 dared to challenge this mindset and raise voice for those who were rendered voiceless by patriarchy.

vaishnavi sood

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