International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation(FGM)

News:International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation(FGM) is observed everyday year on February 6.

Facts:

About Female Genital Mutilation(FGM):

• Female Genital Mutilation(FGM) is the name given to procedures that involve altering or injuring the female genitalia for non-medical or cultural reasons.It is mostly carried out on young girls between infancy and age 15.
• It is recognised internationally as a violation of human rights and the health and integrity of girls and women.
• According to WHO, more than 200 million girls and women alive are estimated to have undergone the practice across 30 countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia where FGM is concentrated.

Female Genital Mutilation(FGM) in India:

• In India, FGM is practised predominantly within the Bohra Muslim community which are a subsect of Shia Muslims.
• It is practised as an old traditional practice adhering to religious edicts, controlling women’s sexuality and abiding by the rules stated by the religious clergy.
• In 2017, a Petition was filed in the Supreme Court seeking a ban on FGM as it violates a woman’s right to life and dignity.This has been referred to a nine-judge bench headed by CJI.
• However,the Dawoodi Bohra community still maintains that the practice should be allowed since the Constitution grants religious freedom under Article 25.