A Feminist Overview of Participation of Women Students in Significant Social Movements in Contemporary India

Abstract

India has been a witness to some of the largest social movements in the last two decades and a key aspect of these movements has been the high participation of youth in them. The student community has been at the forefront of participating and even leading many such movements namely Pinjra Tod, Justice for Nirbhaya, Fee Must Fall, Women’s Safety Movement, Anti caa/nrc Movement and many more. The huge participation of women students in all these movements has challenged the masculine nature of social movements in India which have been generally dubbed as male centric owing to more participation from men as both foot soldiers and leaders of these movements. Women students in various universities have raised their voice against the growing cases of sexual harassment of women in academic institutions and have led the movement for women’s safety in both public and personal spaces. The biggest push to the participation of women students in student activism came during the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protests in which the women students of Jamia Millia Islamia led the movement from the front. The iconic picture of courage of women students of Jamia Millia Islamia namely Aysha Renna and Ladeeda Farzana saving their fellow male protesters from police brutality resonated with millions of women across the nation and the anti-CAA movement soon became a movement led by women all over the country. The research article has especially focused on the participation and role of women students in social movements. It has also encapsulated in detail about contemporary women-led movements and protests that are witness to the emergence of many women student activists as leaders in their own right. The article has specifically emphasized on the emergence of women’s participation in significant social movements of the last two decades such as Pinjra Tod, Hijab Ban Movement, Justice for Nirbhaya and many more.