Immoral Traffic Prostitution: Indian Press on the Abolition of Devadasi System in the Madras Presidency, 1927-1949

Abstract

Devadasi Abolition Act is the important social legislation regarding the emancipation of women. The reformers found lot of hurdles to enact this legislation and implement. To avoid the unnecessary problems, the Government of Madras tried to appease the orthodox people by following its escaping mechanism called ‘religious neutrality.’ Most of the papers requested the government to keep the policy away for the good things to be done. Event hough the conservative press made negative efforts against the Legislations; the majority of the papers defended them with social conscience. Thus, the press justified the right things, persuaded the government for them and stimulated the public for the noble cause regarding the emancipation of women. The Ananda Bodhini observed an important thing “The government should stop the inhuman activities in the society even though it assured not to interfere in the social matters. Why doesn’t the government go for abolition of the evils which humiliated the children and the women for a life time? Our leaders must pass the resolution by which the government should be stimulated and sent them to it. This observation exposed the positive dimensions of the press in Tamilnadu. The Indian Press of the said period voluntarily came forward to support the evil practice of Devadasi system, practicised for over many centuries in the Madras Presidency and advocated the principle of liberating the suffered women ‘dasis’ from the cultural backwardness.