Hansa Jivraj Mehta: Voice of the Unheard

It was a few minutes after midnight, on 15th August 1947, when the first Indian National Flag that was to be unfurled over independent India was presented to the Constituent Assembly. The honour of presenting the flag to the assembly was bestowed on a figure who was a strong advocate of educational reforms and equal rights, she was Hansa Jivraj Mehta.

Figure 1 Hansa Jivraj Mehta; Source – HerZindagi.com

Born on 3rd July 1897, Hansa Mehta was the daughter of Manubhai Mehta, Dewan of Baroda State. Unlike the unfortunate condition of women’s education during that period, Hansa had the privilege of studying journalism and sociology from London. Her academic background was the foundation stone that helped in shaping the rest of her life. Hansa’s interest in journalism led to her introduction to Sarojini Naidu and then with Mahatma Gandhi in 1918 and it set her on a path from where there was no turning back.

She became an integral part of India’s Independence Movement through her active participation in the Non-Cooperation and Swadeshi movements where she was arrested in 1932. In 1935, the Government of India Act was passed which had the provisions of provincial autonomy and it led to her entry in electoral politics through the provincial elections of 1937, where Hansa was the candidate for a seat in Bombay Legislative Council. She was given the choice of contesting the election from a reserved seat, but she refused. Contesting from the general category, she won the election and served as a Principal Secretary. Her place in the council paved a new future as it gave her a chance to represent Bombay in the Constituent Assembly.

Before her years at the Constituent Assembly, Hansa was known as an educationist, writer, feminist, and reformist. Her stance on creating equal opportunities for boys and girls helped her in setting up home sciences as a university subject and pushed her to start a post-graduate school of social work. As a part of STRONG WOMEN’S MOVEMENT , she also pushed for abolition of Sarada Act (child marriage), abolition of the devdasi system and educational and personal reforms for women and children.

One of the other feathers in her hat was her role in All India Women’s Conference (AIWC) where she served as President for one year in 1946. It was during the 18th AIWC session (Hyderabad, 1946) that she along with Rajkumari Amrit Kaur drafted the Indian Women’s Charter of Rights and Duties. It was a revolutionary charter that asked for equal rights of women in terms of civic rights, education, health, remuneration, equal distribution of property, and equal application of marriage laws. Using the word “revolutionary” is justifiable for this charter as its ideas were further implemented in the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights. During her time, AIWC also established Lady Irwin College in Delhi for women, which had the departments of home science, educational research, and teacher training.

It was in the same year that Jawaharlal Nehru recommended her to a position in the United Nations Human Rights Council. Her simple yet powerful thought of changing the phrase ‘All men are born free and equal’ in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to ‘All human beings are born free and equal’, received praises from everywhere. She served in the role for six years and worked on recognition of women’s rights and international human rights.

During the period of 1946-1949, Hansa was involved in the Constituent Assembly where she was a member of the Fundamental Rights sub-committee, the advisory committee, and the provincial constitutional committee. One of her significant works in the Constituent Assembly was to make Uniform Civil Code (UCC) a justiciable part of the constitution. She along with Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, B.R. Ambedkar, and Manoo Masani viewed UCC to be part of the state's responsibility. It means that a single Indian identity should be established over multiple religious identities. However, their motion to pass this code as a right was overturned and it became a non-justiciable directive principle, which means they are not enforceable by the courts for their violation.

Like her whole life, her marriage was also a role model for the society as she chose to marry outside her caste. Her decision was strongly supported by Sir Sayajirao Gaekwad III, Maharaja of Baroda State. Later, her husband Jivraj Narayan Mehta became Gujarat’s first chief minister, and she served as First Lady of the state.

In one of the sessions of the assembly, a sexist remark against women was made by a member, Mr. Rohini Kumar Chaudhari:

“We have in this Constitution cow protection to some extent, but there is no provision at all for protection against cows. There is also no provision in this Constitution for protection against women. We really need protection against women because in every sphere of life they are now trying to elbow us out. In the offices, in the legislatures, in the embassies, in everything they try to elbow us out. They succeed for two reasons: one, our exaggerated sense of courtesy, and then because of their having some influence in the ear of those persons who have authority,” said Chaudhuri.

The answer to this comment was given by Hansa in a polite yet stern manner:

“The world would have thought very little of the men if they had asked for protection against women in this Constitution; I am very happy to see that the Constitution does not include that provision. Otherwise, men would have had to hide their faces before the world.”

Post-independence, she went on to serve on the board of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). She was awarded Padma Bhushan in 1959 for her contributions to the society at large.

Throughout our history, there have been few people who were like forces of nature and have used all their might to turn the tides of time, Hansa Mehta being one of those few. It is true that she was born at a time when being a woman was not easy, but her struggles and accomplishments helped in paving a better life for women in Indian society. Her life is a role model not only for women but for people who feel that their voices are not important.

Figure 2 From left — Angela Jurdak (Lebanon), Fryderyka Kalinowski (Poland), Bodil Begtrup (Denmark), Minerva Bernardino (Dominical Republic), and Hansa Mehta (India), delegates to the UN’s Sub-Commission on the Status of Women, New York, May 1946 /UN Photo; Source - Lawoctopus.com