India

Granddaughter’s Speech Cut Short at Memorial for Nobel‑Nominated Women’s Rights Advocate

By TOI Lifestyle Desk

Krishna Ahooja‑Patel, an Indian peace activist, lawyer and women's rights campaigner who was nominated for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize as part of the 1,000 Women initiative, died in December 2018. A memorial lecture in Ahmedabad honored her legacy. Nia Patel, her granddaughter, was invited to speak about women in India and the impact of deforestation in the name of development. During her remarks, a male guest interrupted her and asked her to finish quickly. Nia posted a video of the event on Instagram, describing the interruption as “silencing a woman in real time” and questioning the gap between institutions that discuss gender justice and the respect they afford women speakers. The video, which has over a million views, begins with Nia introducing herself and the purpose of her speech. She highlighted her grandmother’s work on labour, migration, women's employment, development and gender equality, noting that Ahooja‑Patel spent about 25 years in the United Nations system and served as president of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom from 2001 to 2004. Nia said the interruption showed how performative some institutions can be and that respecting speakers is essential when honoring a woman who fought for equality. She concluded that remembering her grandmother involves continuing the questions she raised and that respecting a woman's right to speak is a simple but vital step toward that legacy.