PHOTO © MIGUEL CANDELA 42
the Gulabi Gang, located in the small town of Badausa.
Created in 2006, this association in which about
400,000 women spread across the country are already
a part of has become the terror of rapists, abusers and
corrupt policemen – all because its founder, Sampat Pal
Devi, is not a woman to be messed with.
“I don’t advocate violence, but there are times when
that is the only way to fight. There are people with
whom words and arguments are simply not enough,”
she stresses, pointing to the photo of Janki.
That is why those who join the ranks of the Gulabi
Gang wear a distinctive uniform that is now instantly
recognisable; the pink sari, India’s
traditional dress. With the 500 rupees
annual fee, members also get a stick to
carry around at all times.
“It is intended to protect us, but also55% of women – justify domestic violence in some form
or another based on these excuses; the disrespecting of
in-laws, the postponing of housework and arguing with
the husband. And it doesn’t only happen in poor rural
areas – in February 2014, the Supreme Court of India
ratified that rape within marriage is legal.
Many also believe that an infertile woman is akin
to a useless animal, and some, including those who
killed Janki, even feel entitled to take matters into
their own hands.
But her father, Dinesh Prasad Panday, believes
there is no justification for murdering a woman. So,
after months of unsuccessfully trying to get the police
to prosecute Anand’s family, who belong to a higher
caste and have contacts among local government
officials, he has decided to seek justice in another
way: he has taken the case to the headquarters ofSampat Pal Devi (right)
teaches a member how
to protect herself against
abusive husbands and men