660 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
so much that such things result in grave disasters. Legally that woman cannot re-marry. Her legal husband has no relations with her. May she lie in the abyss of the society and suffer extreme distress and tribulations, yet the society does not allow her to enter into an honourable remarriage whereby she may be able to support and sustain her children, set up a family and pass the rest of the life in comfort and ease. Under such circumstances I wish that the woman should have this right. I do not wish that this right should so commonly be used that it may create retalliation and every man or woman may begin to think that they can have separation if and when they like. As far as I think this Bill does not provide so much facilities as the people profess. The most outstanding speciality that I can see in this Bill is that in 80 per cent, of our community I have seen that a panchayat is called and separation is effected within a minute’s time. At places and in certain communities even the panchayat does not assemble to give its decision. Males and females are quite free and leaving each other, they can re-marry whomsoever they like. The utmost punishment the community can impose upon them is that they are somewhat chastised or ex-communicated and after giving a community feast, they are again taken back in the folds of the community. The passing of this Bill will highly benefit those communities wherein separation and divorce are considered to be very insignificant things. This Bill will impose restrictions on them also and the greatest benefit that we would have of this Bill is that our backward communities which have no cultural background will become cultured and their moral standard will be raised. This is the most outstanding speciality that I have come across in this Bill.
The strongest opposition that is being made against this Bill is I think about the question of the property, for the reason that this Hindu Code Bill seeks to provide the daughter also a share in the father’s property equal to that of the son. A number of different things are being said about this measure. Some hon. Members hold the view that by adopting such a measure the innate affection and natural love between the brother and sister will cease to exist, our heredity and our entire family system will be disrupted. I cannot understand this thing because as we see today, if a person has two or four sons then it is not at all essential that these brothers fight among themselves or kick up disputes. But at the same time we do sometimes hear of such incidents and many instances are before us that such disputes are kicked up and they become deadly enemies. So I think that if