India Government Policies in Handling Gender-Based Violence against Women during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Feminist Perspective

Abstract

Abstract. India's entrenched patriarchal culture and practices result in gender inequalities that are
detrimental to women. The view that women are inferior to men results in women not having the
same opportunities as men, and the normalization of violence against women in the Indian society.
The Covid-19 pandemic at the beginning of 2020 required India to implement quarantine and lock
down to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus. These quarantines and lockdowns lock women in the
home with perpetrators of violence and make it difficult to access assistance, leading to an increase
in the number of domestic violence in India. The government's role is vital, especially at critical times
like this, to overcome gender-based violence, especially domestic violence against women. This study
aims to analyze, through the lens of feminism theory in international relations, how the Indian
government deals with gender-based violence against women during the Covid-19 pandemic. To
answer this question, the author will use a qualitative method by analyzing data and information
obtained from the mass media, journal articles, and various official documents. The findings of this
study are, the Indian government did not consider the issue of gender-based violence as essential at
that time. Even though the Indian government continues to run and open women-specific schemes
during the pandemic, but there are no new initiatives on a national scale; initiatives are only carried
out by a few states, which of course, only have an impact in specific areas. Funding for women's
support schemes is also reduced so that the amount of assistance and the quality that can be provided
is limited and not maximized. This is due to the lack of participation of women in governance and
policy making, so that the resulting policies do not target the needs of women.

Keywords: India, Women, Gender-based Violence, Domestic Violence, Government Policies