Bhanwari Devi (1992 Case)

Bhanwari Devi (1992 Case) Biography

Bhanwari Devi is an Indian woman, whose alleged gang rape and the following events attracted media attention, both national and international. In 2001, Jag Mundhra made a film, Bawandar based on her real story, where the lead role was played by Nandita Das. Devi received a payment through a political worker, who calls her Rakhi sister. Following the series of events that took place in the remote village of Rajasthan, she gathered enough strength to fight for justice and thus she became a role model to whole Indian women. She was invited to be a part of the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing. In 1994, she was awarded the Neerja Bhanot Memorial Award of 1 lakh cash money for the courage and commitment shown by her. In 2002, the Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Ashok Gehlot, allotted her a residential plot and announced a grant of Rs. 40,000 for home construction.

Bhanwari Devi was born in a low-caste potter family in a small village of Rajasthan. Child marriages were common in the village, and the caste system was dominant during 1980’s. In 1985 Bhanwari Devi became a saathin ("friend") as part of the Women's Development Project run by the Government of Rajasthan. As a social worker, she worked for the issues related to land, water, literacy, health, minimum wages etc. In 1987, she got support from her village when she took up an issue of the attempted rape of a woman from a neighbouring village. But later she faced resistance from her own community when she stood against child marriages.

According to Bhanwari Devi, at 6 pm on 22 September 1992 when she was working in the field with her husband, he was beaten by a group of 5 men. When she came to her husband's rescue, two of them raped her while the other three pinned her down on the ground. Instead of keeping quiet like local village women do, she fought for justice though she had to face opposition from her own community. She was supported by Mrs. Sharma, a block-level worker. Even the accused offered to pay a settlement to Bhanwari in 1994. But she denied accepting, asking them to admit to the rape to restore her family's honor.

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Updated: March 04, 2014