SUPPRESSION TO PROTEST: A JOURNEY OF STRUGGLE OF A DALIT WOMAN IN BABURAO BAGULS NOVEL SOOD

Gender violence in any form is a punishable crime in India but still it is prevailing in society. Indian constitution safeguards womens rights and guarantees them equal status. Despite the strong measures taken by the constitution makers, the loopholes in the entire system of the law implementing authority and the government machineries do not act responsible and consider the atrocities on women seriously.The largenumber of atrocity cases registered in the police station and pending in the courts makes it clear.Though Hindu society worships women and regards themgoddesses,they areperceivedsexual beings, play things, commodities and mens possession in reality.This paper is an attempt to present this reality and highlight the plight of women in caste gender-based society that Baburao Bagul projects in his Marathi novel, Sood. Janki, the protagonistis a victim of gender violence perpetuated in the caste prejudiced society. Her rebel against the caste and gender discrimination proves to be a milestone in her struggles with the upper caste mentalities those ones who subjugate and oppress women. Her voice is the voice of entire Dalit community that that she raises to assert her resistance for asserting the identities of entire community and demands for a more open and equal egalitarian society for the welfare of entire humanity on this beautiful planet that has already been turned into a hell by the conformist religious ideologies of the priests.