In passing away of Prof. Ila Pathak due to breast cancer on 9-1-2014 in Ahmedabad, Gujarat has lost a dedicated social activist who stood by socially excluded sections of society, especially brutalized women. She tirelessly supported women survivors of dowry harassment, rape victims, crimes of honour (‘fallen” women whose noses were cut as punishment for being ‘adulteress” by their husbands and in-laws) not only in the urban areas but also in the rural and tribal areas. She campained against se selective abortions of female foetuses way back in 1980s.

Together both of us have been aware of her work with AWAG from 1981 when she attended the first national conference of women’s studies at the SNDT Women’s university’s Juhu campus that resulted in formation of the Indian Association of Women’s studies. Ilaben brought her own energies and perspective to women’s movement. She had been an untiring worker right from the beginning as is clear from her life. A master’s degree in law, a Ph.D. in English literature and a high post in NCC were indicative of her capacity to achieve the goals she had set for herself. Her devotion to working for women’s rights and development was reflected in her writings and action through Ahmedabad Women’s Action Group (AWAG) and innumerable institutions she was associated with.

Feminist Activism of Ilaben Pathak

Ilaben began her career as a university teacher of English language and literature at H. K. Arts College, Ahmedabad and free lance journalist who wrote on women’s concerns. In the early seventies she started her crusade against misogyny in Gujarati plays rife with double meaning sentences full of crude and crass jokes/puns that degraded women and objectified women’s bodies. In 1981, Ilaben with her young colleagues/students such as Dr. Ila Joshi, Aditi Desai (Theatre artiste), Sofia Khan (now a human rights lawyer) established a women’s rights organization, AWAG (acronym means Voice). AWAG energetically raised voice against sexism in advertisement, media and textbooks. They blackened sexist advertisement at public places-roads, square, staged dharna against a phallocentric play “Putra Kameshti Yagna” to be aired on All India Radio and got the broadcasting cancelled. Her tireless work resulted in Government of Gujarat appointing a committee under her leadership to examine portrayal of sex stereotypes and subordinate status of women in the school textbooks in which she involved us also. Mandate for evaluation of the textbooks was decided within the framework of equality, development and peace.

In 1982, she spearheaded participatory action research project of AWAG to bring out precarious condition of homeless and miserable tribal migrant works near railway tracks of Ahmedabad city who eked out their subsistence thro’ collection of coal fallen from engine on the tracks. She started income generation activities for them based on tribal art and beadwork. In 1982, when a tribal woman in Sagbara village of South Gujarat was gang raped and Sahiyar stood by the victims, it was Ilaben who activised the government machinery and took the case up to Amnesty International. As a result all the rapists were punished and a tribal woman got justice ad her dwelling place. Ilaben took leadership for movement against Patan P T C College gang rapes f students by their male teachers backed by powerful politicians. She also supported Manipur’s Irom Sharmila’s agitation against Armed Forces Special Powers’ Act (AFSPA). Ilaben raised her voice against all forms injustice without fear of consequences. Her courageous and consistent work among victims of communal riots post demolition of Babri Musjeed in 1993 and among Muslim refugees after Gujarat riots in 2002 symbolised her secular humanism.

Ilaben’s command over language came handy to coin catchy and hard hitting slogans in Gujarati such as “Silence is not a virtue, Break the silence of oppression”, “Putting up with injustice is not a virtue, fight for justice”. She gave great emphasise to documentation, research and training and AWAG always provided material in local language and case studies and resource persons for capacity building of community workers, elected representatives and youth. During 1986-1992, she regularly wrote for a feminist quarterly in Gujarati, Nari Mukti (Women’s Freedom) that was collectively brought out by feminists of Mumbai, Valsad, Surat, Vadodara and Ahmedabad.

We have fond memories of spending quality time with Ilaben in IAWS Conferences, Nairobi End of the Decade Conference, 1985, Gujarat Human Rights Conference, 1990, Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (2011) and capacity building conferences of Gujarat University on Sexual Harassment at Workplace. To take women’s political agenda in the mainstream politics, she also contested election for Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation in 1990.

Ilaben and Social Movements

Her persuasive style of speaking was her success mantra. She could reach out to all- Gandhian, liberals, feminists, human rights activists, leftists…She could establish communication with the rich and powerful without getting cowed down by them. She reached out to the weak and marginalized people with utmost humility. She made lifelong friends among women’s studies scholar and feminists whenever she attended national Conferences of Indian Association of Women’s Studies and international conferences at of the United Nations. She attended these conferences with over a dozen women of her organization and she looked after them very well.

Crucial Contribution

Ilaben served on many apex bodies to further the cause of women. She was a member of Women Development Cell of Gujarat University that had to perform twin tasks of prevention of sexual harassment and promotion of gender sensitization in the university and its affiliated colleges. Ilaben was also governing board member of Centre for Social Studies, Surat. She played important role in all women centred activities of Gujarat Vidyapeeth. Ilaben was president of India Chapter of Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom. She was an active member of Movement for Secular Democracy. In 2012, Ilaben Pathak was honoured for her work among poor and oppressed women and four books based on compilation of her articles promoting women’s striving for dignity and struggle for empowerment.

Her 4 decades of pioneering work will always give us strength and inspiration to keep the torch of women’s rights burning in today’s volatile circumstances. She has left a huge fan following among students and all those women whom she supported pro-actively, intellectually and emotionally. Ilaben will always remain with us in spirit. As fellow travelers in the women’s movement who shared common her-story and collective memory, we salute our sister, Ila Pathak.

Vibhuti Patel