Dabur ad had to be withdrawn due to 'public intolerance': Justice Chadrachud

Last week, Dabur had to withdraw an advertisement, which featured two women celebrating Karva Chauth together, and tendered an unconditional apology for "unintentionally hurting people's sentiments".  The advertisement faced backlash on social media platforms from a section of people and Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra issued a warning to Dabur India to withdraw the "objectionable" advertisement or face legal action.

Speaking on "Empowerment of Women through Legal Awareness" at the nationwide launch of legal awareness programmes by NALSA in association with the National Commission for Women, Justice Chandrachud noted that there are real-life situations which show that there is great divergence between ideals of the law and the real state of the society today. 

"Just two days ago all of you may have seen an advertisement of a company, which was required to be pulled down. It was an advertisement on Karva Chauth for same sex couple, it had to be withdrawn on the ground of public intolerance. Our laws have rights for women, the Constitution recognises those rights," he said.

Elaborating on the rights, he added these rights extend to matters such as property and succession and they also extend to the workplace. "They recognise the right to enter the workforce and protect women, once they are in the workplace. But it is important for us to spread legal awareness about how women can get into the workplace. How they can join the Army. How does a woman access armed forces," said Justice Chandrachud, citing that the top court recently opened the doors for women to join the Army.

He said legal awareness has to be spread about these avenues and added that the Food Security Act, in fact, recognises women as the head of the household, and the right should also extend to the transgenders.

Justice Chandrachud added that the Constitution is a transformative document that sought to remedy the structural inequalities rooted in patriarchy and legislation like domestic violence act, prevention of sexual harassment at workplace act have been enacted to achieve the goal of fulfilling the constitutional rights of women. 

He said that awareness about the rights of women could be truly meaningful if that awareness was created among the younger generation of men in the society. 

"Because I believe that the deprivation of rights of women, if we have to find an answer to them, the origin must be in the changing of mindset both of men and women.

"The more we realise that the category of women encompasses various social, economic and political disadvantages, the more we will be able to cater to their individualised and actual needs. True freedom for women, in other words, is truly intersectional."