Guest column: We women have the right to protest

Women working in garment factories are terribly exploited. When the government comes up with a  ridiculous plan to hold back their PF, they have every right to come out on the streets and protest. But the way the police dealt with them is shameful. They are not expected to  lose patience , but show restraint when dealing with women. The way they  behaved on Tuesday cannot be justified at any cost. Even the High Court has pulled them up for their behaviour.

After the lathicharge on women demonstrators, everyone is saying the police force should have more women on it. But will it be any better if  women police beat up women agitators? Also,the police's claim that the situation went out of hand with some anti-social elements  using the women as shields, is hard to believe. If that was the case, they should have identified the troublemakers and arrested them. Why assault innocent women for someone else’s fault? In a democratic country, people have every right to protest.  But the lobbing of teargas shells and caning of agitators  makes it seem like we are living under a dictatorship.

(The writer is founder and director, Vimochana, an NGO fighting for women's rights)