By Ms. Niranjana | Project Leader
'Friendship' Centres
Mangala's tussle has been at different levels. She was the second wife of her husband who was a construction worker. The first wife who stayed in a different village was legally separated and had no objection to her husband's second marriage.
Mangala is a hard working woman and started working shoulder-to-shoulder with her husband at his various construction sites.
This couple also took care and gave monetary help to the children from the first marriage- one son and two daughters as they thought it is their responsibility.
Lift started looking up as Mangala herself strived to learn tailoring and augment their meager income. She started getting orders from other women.
By and by, through their hard work they could construct a cement house for themselves.
Mangala's world came crashing down when her husband was killed in a road accident. Barely did she get time to recover from this shock. She learnt that her husband's death certificate was issued and taken away by the now grown-up son of the first wife. They also laid claim to the newly constructed house, paid the tax in their own name as proof of legal heirs.
It was very evident the local government official must have indulged in corruption for all this to happen so swiftly and without considering Mangala's right.
Friends, we want you to know that with your support, Chetana-Vikas has opened 'Friendship Centres' in interior cluster villages to provide prompt advice, legal aid to women in need.
As no one was listening to her, Mangala sought the advice of this centre in her village and they helped her chalk out a strategy to fight for her legal right. Without the death certificate (which the government official refused to issue to her), Mangala had no standing for her fight. The son had taken away many of their expensive belongings too from the house. The ownership of the house could be claimed on the basis of death certificate only.
Her first tussle was with the government. She met each and every member of the governing body and threatened legal action. As they were just beating around the bush, this villager Mangala who had only studied till high school, filed a case in court with the help of 'Friendship Centre'. At the end of continuous rounds of court the property was distributed equally between the son & Mangala. The house came to Mangala. But the son refused to cooperate and hassled her by not providing proper documents. Again, the centre advised her and she went directly to police station. Ultimately, the fight on various levels resulted in Mangala, getting back into her 'home'.
She also could avail of all the documents which were necessary to get benefit from the government schemes for widows. Without proper documents, no government officials could have helped her with anything.
Friends, 'Friendship Centres' are helping plenty of poor, many times illiterate women in raising awareness about their right and also with advice on proper methodologies to fight their cases in less time and less expense. And all this is provided without taking a single fee from the rural women. The empowerment here is at multiple levels.
Let us include more friends for the 'Friendship Centre' who are working with practically no monetary help for the services rendered to needy women.
Ask them to visit :
<http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/empower-deserted-women-and-widows-in-rural-india/,>.
We are also accessible on <https://www.facebook.com/pages/Chetana-Vikas/162861643736214.>
Thank You !
Warm Regards,
Niranjana
Project Leader
By Niranjana Maru | Project Leader
By Niranjana Maru | Project Leader
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