Gender-Based Violence in India: A Critical Analysis of Legal Reforms, Challenges, and Social Transformation

Gender based violence is one of the most rampant issues of human rights that continue to exist in the society. This issue remains as a major legal and social concern across the world. Despite gender recognition and equality being a essential aspect of governance across the world. Still domestic violence persists in various forms like, honour killing domestic violence, sexual harassment, mental abuse and economic violence. This paper examines various factors, forms and legal reforms that are present to address it. As this study adopts a qualitative and analytical research based on secondary sources the research also analyses various legal framework such as the protection of women from domestic violence act 2005, sexual harassment of women at workplace act, 2013 to evaluate the protection available to victims of gender-based violence. The study concludes that legal reforms alone are not sufficient to overcome this issue of gender-based violence because this is a persistent and a rampant issue that has been prolonged for a very long period of time across all the countries. Unless there are stronger enforcement mechanisms and institutional accountability, public awareness programs and gender sensitive training and social transformation across all the countries, this issue will still be prevalent in the near future. A coordinated effort by the government and the people is required in order to ensure that gender-based violence is not prevailing in both domestic and public areas. This is to ensure that there is a safer and gender equal and inclusive environment for all the individuals irrespective of their race, caste, social structure, etc.