Every Indian must take pledge to protect honour of women: Mukherjee

President Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday called on every Indian citizen to take a pledge to protect the honour of women.

Addressing the nation on the eve of India's 66th Republic Day, Mukherjee said that he was pained to see certain sections of the Indian citizenry failing to respect women and ensuring their safety.

"Fellow citizens, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Subhash Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh, Rabindranath Tagore, Subramanya Bharati and many more - the vocation and the approach might have been different, but they all spoke the same language of patriotism. We owe our freedom to these great warriors of nationalism. We also salute the unsung heroes who have died securing the liberation of Mother India. But it pains me to see that Mother India is not respected by her own children when it comes to the safety of women," the President said.

"Atrocities of rape, murders, harassment on the roads, kidnapping and dowry deaths have made women fearful even in their own homes. Rabindranath Tagore saw women not only as the deities of the household fire, but also the flame of the soul itself. Where have we failed, as parents, teachers and leaders, that our children have forgotten all tenets of decent behaviour and respect for women? We have enacted many legislations, but, as Benjamin Franklin had once said and I quote: "Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are".

The President said that only a nation that respects and empowers its women can become a global power.

The condition of women in India has always been a matter of grave concern, and part of the problem continues to be the patriarchal nature of Indian society, which while giving respect to women as mothers and sisters, hampers their independence and gives no assurances about their safety.

In modern times, many working women are still subjected to immense pressure; shouldering the dual responsibility of a housewife and a working woman simultaneously with little or no help from their husbands.

In December 16, 2012, a 23 year old paramedical student was gang-raped by six men inside a moving bus in outer Delhi and then thrown off the bus naked. She died 13 days later in a hospital in Singapore.

Following massive protests over the incident, demanding justice for the victim, the government of the day enacted and amended existing laws on rape and criminality against women, but this has not resulted in bringing down the incidences of various types of violence against women.