There are no two ways about it, Hindu women are one of the most deprived subsets of our entire population who are more often than not held down by the more fundamentalist beliefs of Bangladesh's Hindu community.
For a long time, rights activists and members of our civil society have tried tooth and nail to have the Hindu Law of Inheritance (Amendment) Act 1929 be amended in order to better reflect the overall progress Bangladesh has made in terms of women's rights. And while the government has been ready for such reform, it is, unfortunately, the more extreme elements of the Hindu community who have proven to be a major obstacle in this regard.
Thankfully, change may now be imminent for this incredibly under-represented segment of our society, as the High Court has recognized the lack of any concrete action towards reforming laws that pertain to Hindu women's rights to guardianship, inheritance, and marriage registration.
It has been several years since the Law Commission developed a draft bill to change Hindu laws as they currently stand, but the process had hit a wall due to objections from fundamentalist voices within the Hindu community. Given that India has successfully made reforms that enshrine basic rights for Hindu women, there is absolutely no excuse for Bangladesh to be dragging its feet to that same end.
While we may still be some way before actual reform in Hindu laws is made, the High Court's recognition of this issue is perhaps the biggest step made in this endeavour so far and certainly makes a case for our country gradually shifting away from Colonial-era laws that are holding back our people.
As a nation that is on the cusp of fulfilling its middle income aspirations, Bangladesh cannot afford to kowtow to the irrational demands of extreme minorities regardless of their belief system. Times are changing.
