OPPRESSION OF DALIT WOMEN IN PATRIARCHAL CASTE RIDDEN SOCIETY

<p>Being Dalit and women, Indian<br>Dalit women experience the triple<br>jeopardy of caste, gender, and class. They<br>are not only exploited, tortured, and<br>harassed by their men and but also<br>subjected to a series of atrocities by the<br>upper castes Hindus. They are treated as<br>men’s possessions, properties, and sexual<br>objects. Dalit men often imitating the<br>Hindu patriarchy subordinate women and<br>treat them inhumanly. As Dalit women are<br>denied equal rights, they often suffer the<br>pangs resulting from utter poverty and<br>become the victims of men’s lust when they<br>struggle to earn their livelihood. Dalit<br>women are exploited, tortured, and<br>harassed by Dalit men as well the upper<br>castes Hindus. The upper castes Hindu<br>women become the victims of gender<br>prejudices in Hindu patriarchy, but Dalit<br>women suffer the triple jeopardy of caste,<br>gender, and class. The present paper aims<br>at analyzing the caste, gender, and class<br>oppression the Dalit women are subjected<br>to. The attempt has been made to explore<br>the plight of a Dalit woman before and<br>after her husband's death.</p>