Contemporary Women and Political Participation in India

Abstract: The hallmark of the Indian constitution is that it guarantees the fundamental principles of popular sovereignty, adult franchise, right to equality and prohibition of discrimination on the basis of caste, creed, community, religion and social justice, thus ensuring the dignity of the individual, unity and integrity of the nation and the success of representative democracy.

In spite of the existence of laws guaranteeing non-discrimination, gender inequality still persists in India and women’s political participation and representation in legislative bodies is low. This is largely due to structural and cultural barriers. It is crucial for political reform to mobilise women as vibrant agents in the legislative bodies. This paper examines the viability of a strategy that will help women overcome obstacles responsible for their under-representation and ensure sustainable development in all spheres of life.

This analytical study is based on empirical views drawn from feminist groups, non-governmental organisations and the media at the national and the international levels. All aspects of political participation — the status of women during pre- and post- independence periods, the obstacles that prevent women from participation, political empowerment measures at the grassroots level and the proposed legislation on Women’s Reservation Bill — are analyzed in detail.

Keywords: women’s political participation, women’s discrimination, gender inequality, status of women, social development, women’s representation, women candidates, women’s empowerment, political gender gap, women’s seat reservation, human development, male domination, economic empowerment

The Indian opposition to colonial rule, gained momentum in the beginning of the 19^th century when the country united to expel the British rulers. The preliminary plans for rebuilding an India free from deprivation, disparities a discrimination were drawn by the nationalist leaders in the course of the colonial rule. When India became independent, the Constitution introduced universal adult franchise guaranteeing the fundamental principles of right to equality irrespective of differences in gender, caste, creek, community or religion.

The success of a true democracy rests on its ability to promote ideals excellence by protecting human rights in general and women’s rights in particular the same time, democratic values should ensure political participation both men and women also contribute towards building awareness about equitable development in a society that is hierarchical and gender-biased. While the objective is instrumental for sustainable growth and is considered to be the rich contributing factor to human development and nation-building in contemporary India, gender inequality still remains.

Women constitute half of the country’s population and it is an undeniable fact that women contribute directly and indirectly to the society and the nation but their rights are often denied by all the players. Hence, the reservation route for women to the Parliament constitutes an honest recognition of their contribution to social development. Although denial of equal citizenship to women is common phenomenon familiar in many parts of the world, it assumes alarming proportions in developing countries like India. It is important to challenge such barriers to full citizenship that women have to confront and to raise awareness of women’s rights. This paper will attempt to describe in detail the barriers prevailing in the social, economic and cultural spheres to women’s political participation. While women’s empowerment and increased efficiency essential for social development, their concerns are seldom addressed. Why that so when we talk about the right to equality in very eloquent terms? Apparently, the question of effective participation does not arise till a conduct environment is created and politics is cleansed of its gender-biased views.

Despite the widespread realisation that women’s equal participation politics is a pre-requisite for imparting true meaning to representative democracy, women are hindered from active political participation due to a number of reasons. In the initial years, prejudices prevailed and women’s political rights were conceived minimally, as limited to the right to suffrage and candidacy. For several decades, concerted efforts were undertaken by successive governments during pre- and post-independence periods to improve the status of women and thereby attain the objective of ensuring gender equality. But the condition remained the same with no correction of gender disparities.

Regardless of the constitutional guarantees towards equal rights irrespective of gender, we find women being discriminated against in the elections on several variables. Women’s multiple roles deprive them of an opportunity to create space in the political office and this is particularly true of women from the economically weaker strata. The situation has been the saint from pre-colonial period to the contemporary era, Poverty implies dehumanising conditions and deprivation among women with lesser access to basic needs of food, shelter, health and education.

As per the analysis made by experts, Indian society demonstrates that women have the confidence to articulate their demands, but most often they become victims of gender discrimination. Women’s under-representation is a consequence of inadequate resources and unequal power relations. These factors are an economic liability because they impose restrictions on women and deny them access to proper education, nutrition, and good health. This situation may lead them to think of political activity in a manner different from men.

The patriarchal values and insensitive legal systems that are deeply embedded in society have led to male domination in all aspects of life. The ill-effects of neglecting women’s rights may not appear serious over a short while. But over a longer period, the cumulative effects of gender inequalities will result in marginalising women perpetually in public institutions. Mobilisation and motivation for discussions and initiatives aside, women’s participation, at least in terms of numbers, remains hampered as long as there is a wide gender-gap in extent of political participation. Attitudinal changes in the society towards equality have to be effected and accelerated in order to have substantive effect on women. Meanwhile, sustaining this transformation is a significant challenge, given the inertia and resistance of patriarchal institutions and values. Bridging the wide gap between gender imbalance and human rights in accordance with institutional guarantees of equality is a major challenge. It requires great sensitivity to deal with such issues in a multi-ethnic society like India with a large cultural diversity. Unless behavioural patterns and value systems change, there will always be danger of patriarchy as much by women as by men. Substantive measures and corrective action rather than mere pronouncements about gender equality are the needs of the day.

Under the auspices of the United Nations Organisation, the very first legislation related to women CEDAW, came into force in 1981 and India became a signatory to this Convention in 1993. CEDAW mandates the adoption of specific measures for accelerating de facto equality with men. But no significant changes were found towards discrimination against women. Here, I would like to point out the reason why there is slow pace of progress in spite of so many pro-women legislations. It is assumed that laws will enforce themselves without any special efforts being made by the government. The analysis also indicates that the key players are keener on sustained economic growth than on issues concerning social development. There is an immediate need for consolidating the democratic processes, improving education, ensuring economic empowerment or women and removing social norms that oppress minorities and women. For strict a effective enforcement, timely support, close monitoring and implementation are necessary in addition to enacting laws for achieving the set objectives.

In the light of the long defensive battle and collective effort of women movements and ECOs, the government attempted to revamp the politic structure in order to enable women to share power and combat domestic restrain in the participatory democracy. The emergence of good governance has become an entry-point for gender equity is a strategic action plan with the introduction of the Panchayati Raj Act reserving thirty-three percent for women under the three-tier system — Grama Panchayat, Mandal Panchayat and Zilla Parishad or Village Panchayat, Taluq Panchayat and Zilla Parishad – through the 73rd an 74th Constitutional Amendments. The system possesses the capacity to revolutionise the local governing bodies and to redefine the way our patriarch society dictates and defines the status of women.

The Panchyati Raj Act was an empowerment measure which targeted women from rural areas who were the politically marginalised and socially disadvantaged sections. The local system of governance where women had effective presence sought to eliminate subordination of and discrimination against women stemming from patriarchal structures of power. It was also an attempt to revitalise the institutions for building political awareness among women in order to promote their active participation in local self governance at the grassroots level.

It is a matter of great pride that women are entering the political arena a result of positive discrimination in larger numbers. While women preferred to effect a paradigm shift from conventional platforms which were concentrating only on community, ethnicity and religion, the Amendment helped to change the perceptions of women and they gained sense of empowerment. But many obstacles to the full realisation of Panchayati Raj Institution’s transformative potential remain. Political parties in the states are not willing to cede power to the local self governments and hence rejuvenating Gram Sabha calls for appropriate interventions by institutional bodies.

Though Grama Sabha is defined to be participatory democracy, in reality it continues to remain largely defunct. It is an attempt to decentralise the system of good governance at the grassroots level. A government which evolves strategies experiences various difficulties as women represent constituencies on a rotation basis with each term lasting five years. The question is: how can an elected member nurture his/her constituency within five years? The time designated is not adequate enough to ensure the success of community development schemes. Their accountability and close monitoring are possible only when representatives are given opportunity to contest in the elections from the same constituency for

maximising the benefits.

The desire for political parity achieved through reservation indicates a society and government’s role in guaranteeing a degree of social justice and equality of opportunity for citizens of traditionally non-dominant groups through positive, protective, or compensatory discrimination. While our country is trying achieve these values through implementation of reservations in its legislative bodies, it is crucial to assess how the measures being taken to alter power relations ensure equality of opportunity are being actually realised. These issues need to be examined carefully if our country is keen in transforming politics.

Given the barriers it seems nearly impossible for the proportion of women legislators to improve without commensurate progress in women’s overall social status. However, certain electoral conditions do favour women’s representation and can accelerate changes in the gender balance of legislatures if proportional representation of women ensures political empowerment. Is it not true that when representatives are freely elected by universal franchise, the proportion of women’s representation is an indicator of changing attitudes in the society at large?

The proposal for proportional representation of women’s participation in the Parliament or State Legislatures can be attributed to sustained pressure on the part of NGOs. They are the thriving force in launching agenda for women and this indicates that there are inadequacies in the prevailing institutions. The hardships faced by the NGOs and women’s organisations on the issue of proportional representation was brought to light when their demand for the reservation of one-third of seats for women in Parliament and State Legislatures was stalled.

What we are witnessing today is a worrying phenomenon — a further decline in women’s participation in State Legislatures. Additionally, women’s participation in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha has been low and on an average it has reached only 6.6% and 11.6% respectively. Achieving this percentage itself would have been a difficult task but for the few women from elite class or politically influential backgrounds. The question which then arises is: under the given circumstances, is it possible for the common poor to participate without the help of any legal mechanism?

Political parties are important arenas for debating policies and are key institutions for promoting gender equality concerns. The reluctance of political parties to create a space for women in the absence of mandatory provisions is an undeniable fact. They are the main gatekeepers to women’s selection to office. They have not been notable promoters of women’s interests and have seldom assigned priority to gender issues or promoted women as candidates for office’ without being prompted or being placed under any obligation. Hence, women’s movements need to be aware of the conditions under which political parties serve as institutional agents for advancing women’s interests and improving women’s status. The numerical composition of women’s representation is undoubtedly important but a certain percentage of women alone will not be able to make real changes as long as they are granted only limited powers under the provisions of self governance. It is imperative to note that women’s interests can never be addressed or pushed forward by a group of men unless a critical number of women is mobilised to leadership positions. Reservation for women in party leadership positions has been one way of breaking down resistance to women at top levels, but this measure has been harder to introduce than reservation for women on party lists. Reservation is a tool for equality and dignity. When changes are brought about on women’s demand by an independent agency, it will be far more effective and reflective of their needs. Nevertheless, Women’s Reservation Bill designed for the task of making women a vibrant presence in apex bodies, in the State Legislatures and Parliament through the 85th Constitutional Amendment is awaiting enactment. The Bill is caught in an impasse due to contentious views leading to confrontations within the federal system of government.

The structural barriers for women entering political office have become tougher. There is a lack of transparency and male domination at the decision making levels hindering women from political participation. For women’s full and equal participation in decision-making structures and processes at all levels of governance, a strategy has to be evolved for overcoming barriers. We now know that socio-economic impediments have always stood in the way of women’s political participation. Who will address the issues which marginalised women the nation marched towards progress? The assumption that men at the top decision making levels would have a balanced view about the development of men and women has proved to be misplaced. We do not have sufficient number women at the top levels to solve these issues. Had a little attention been paid the issue, the degree of gender-gap with respect to education and health would have grown to this extent.

The quest of equity will not end without wider representation of all groups especially those currently denied access to power and the presentation of all points of view in the process of decision-making. A revision of the current administrative and political structures and their rules is necessary in order to facilitate this broader representation and its translation into political power for those who are currently marginalised. The best proposal in view of protecting interests of and creating opportunities for all groups would be to bring about changes in the rotation of seats in order to ensure that the tenure for the representative is extended to ten years. This will help in nurturing the constituency on a long-term basis.

The political purpose of representative democracy is to lay emphasis on equal access to opportunities and resources and full participation. The strategy political restructuring is the key to economic growth with men and women being given equal opportunities in politics. It is the obligation of the government sure and facilitate adequate representation of women in apex bodies. This initiative will not only bring women into the field of policy formulation and thus influence the decision makers but also help in integrating women into the political culture and empower them to handle complex and diverse situations.

Status of Women before Independence

The twentieth century witnessed an engagement of social forces for ensuring justice, dignity and peace for all the members of Indian society irrespective of gender, race, religion, ethnicity and nationality. It is a matter of pride that the forces of freedom and peace, as articulated through the systems prevailing then, have achieved decisive victory in boosting the human morale ensuring justice.

In the pre-colonial period, the west came to colonise the east in pursuit self-interests. It invented an image of the ‘Orient’ to further its own economic and political well-being. Our freedom fighters challenged the colonial power in two phases. During the first, the strategy was to mobilise the masses against the foreign rulers and this often relied on propagating the idea of cultural identities that were rooted deep in tradition. In the second, the focus was on the right of a nation-state to sovereignty. Thus, there was internal tension within the core of the nationalist movement and it deployed pre-modern culture in its struggle to, attain the modern goal of a sovereign nation-state.

It is common knowledge that there is a long historical legacy of women’s participation in the Indian political process. In the social arena, it can be traced right from the days of the ‘Reform Movement’, when women participated in the struggle against the evil practices of the dominant Hindu society during the nineteenth century. This emerged as a result of the attempts by the Indian bourgeoisie to wrest control from the British. The women’s movement during colonial times, however, was adulterated with the ethos of patriarchal traditions. At this point of time, the Women’s Indian Association was founded by Annie Besant and she took the initiative to demand voting rights for Indian women in 1917.

In response to the Indian agitation for representative government, the British rulers set up a Committee headed by Montague and Chelmsford in 1919 to work out a proposal for ‘Constitutional Reforms’ aiming at the inclusion of a few Indians in government. Many groups presented their case for representation before the Committee. Sarojini Naidu and Margaret Cousins led a small delegation of women to demand that they be granted the same rights of representation in legislatures as men. The British government predictably thought this demand was quite preposterous because women in most Western countries still had not been given the right to vote despite their protracted struggles.

But coming under pressure exercised by the women political leaders, the British government set up the Southborough Committee. In its report, the committee stated that the extension of the vote to women would be premature in a society which continued to enforce purdah (cover) and prohibitions against female education. However, instead of rejecting the demand outright, the British government simply evaded the issue by leaving it to the provincial legislatures they had just set up in India to grant or refuse women franchise. Their assumption was that since Indians were ‘backward’ and ‘premature’ women would never think of political rights or have the desire to be on par with men. Despite the fact that there was no mass-based women’s suffrage movement in India then, each if the Indian provincial legislatures voted for women to be represented equally.²

Sarojini Naidu was a strong supporter of women’s rights who worked the Congress and the Muslim League. Besides, there were others like Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay, Aruna Asaf Ali and Basanti Devi who led many women’s organisations and demanded women suffrage and sought equal participation in labour, relief and national work. Through the concerted efforts of these women’s organisations, a memorandum demanding adult franchise with no gender discrimination was submitted in 1930. In 1931, the Fundamental Rights Resolution passed by the Indian National Congress adopted gender equality as a guiding principle. This indicated a deep concern even during the Independence period with the status of women and the recognition that the progress of the entire nation was integrally linked to the advancement of women.³

Consequently, at the national level, participation of women in the freedom struggle had repercussions on the social scene affecting even ethnic minorities.

Swadeshi Movement conceptualised during our freedom struggle marked ginning of women’s participation in nationalist activities. The Gandhian Non-Cooperation and Non-violent Agitation encouraged women’s participation and they were drawn into the vortex of the struggle for political independence. Ghandi was directly responsible for motivating women in this particular direction. This gave them enormous courage and generated confidence, thus enabling them to for their cause rather than depend upon the benevolence of men in society. Though the Government of India Act passed in 1935 provided a specific for all who were historically marginalised, the entity called ‘woman’ was en into account. Issues of communalism and caste precipitated a real and overwhelmed all thoughts about equality. However, in the overall assessment, women’s involvement in the social and political arenas was participatory and encouraging. Unfortunately, a similar spirit could not continue after independence.

Post-Independence Status of Women

The Constitution of the Republic of India adopted in 1950, enfranchised women at one stroke. The Constitution guaranteed all its citizens justice, economic and political; Liberty — of thought, expression, belief, faith worship; Equality — of status and opportunity; and Fraternity — universal brotherhood; assuring dignity of the individual as well as the unity and integrity of the nation. It also prohibited discrimination or denial of equal protection. The nation policy for the scheduled caste and tribes was also considered as an equity measure to counter-balance the economically viable groups. Right to equality and right to liberty enshrined in the constitution are the real strength of every citizen. The ideology of democracy is to ensure the process by which political goods and services are distributed and fulfil democratic consciousness with gender equality. The concept of democracy will only assume true dynamic significance when political policies and national legislation are decided upon jointly by men and women with equitable regard for the interest aptitudes of both halves of the population. While these are necessary practice they are not sufficient to guarantee women’s equal participation in political life. Safeguarding women’s rights has rarely been brought to the notice of the entire political spectrum and women are generally kept away from political involves Despite the setbacks women experienced due to uneven access to essential resources, the environment often facilitated rather than hindered their opportunities for political participation.

At the dawn of independence, the question rose on how to reconcile some of the inherent practices of the Indian social order with a demand for uniformity. This issue assumed relevance because the notion of legal uniformity was supposed to promote unity but it militated against the very spirit of cultural diversity. In the process of ensuring uniformity and promoting cultural diversity the system failed to provide social justice particularly equal rights to women and there emerged gender inequalities with a range of differences. These issues were interlinked and hence the law rather than emphasising women‘s political development remained static.

In view of the changing social and economic conditions of women in country, the Government of India appointed a Committee on the Status of Women in 197 1 to examine questions related to the rights and status of women. On the International Day for Women in 1975, national strategies concerning universalisation of women’s rights for political participation as well as creating a common platform for internationally agreed strategies, standards, programmes and goals to advance the status of women were recognised. It is necessary to stress the point that non-governmental organisations which have contributed a great deal towards bringing attention to some of the most pressing issues in this regard, also assisted in setting standards and providing alternatives in terms of solutions. In 1975, the path-breaking report ‘Towards Equality’ made a demarcation between the rural and urban women’s experiences. The increased visibility and legitimacy gained during the Beijing process, the grounding of culture of consultation with women’s groups and its strong links with the UNIFEM are the strengths of the Department of Women and Child Development.⁴

It was the ‘Towards Equality’ report of the Commission on Status of Women in India that alerted everybody to the prevailing precarious condition of women. This was a preliminary step towards raising awareness nationally as well as internationally about the needs and constraints for women politicians. The report stressed the need for special measures to transform the society in order to ensure equality guaranteed by the Indian Constitution. It led to the insertion of an Article in the Constitution 1977 and stipulated the fundamental duty of every citizen of India to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women.

It was only during the last three decades that several policy measures taken with direct focus on emancipation and empowerment of women. This atmosphere raised consciousness in building feminist institutions to bring demands to the forefront and sought to challenge the dichotomy and dualism subordinated women and trivialised the reality of their political lives.

Discrimination has however continued to afflict wont en. As a result, the National Commission for Women (NCW), a statutory body, was set up under National Commission for Women Act, 1990, in addition to the first Parliamentary Committee set up in 1997 and a women’s cell comprising the Department of Women and Child under the Ministry of Human Resource Development. The NCW was constituted with a view to raise awareness among women of their legal rights, while also ensuring the general well-being of women. The common woman cannot even afford to think of political participation, unless a strategy is devised for them to work in a conducive environment. The establishment cut of a legal platform based on an optimal method for addressing regional and national priorities constitutes a structure and foundation or for change. All cases of discrimination are reported to the NCW. Measures are taken for improving the status of women based on the recommendations of NCW at regular intervals. While the issues of women’s empowerment arc central to the achievement goals of equality, development and peace, the initiatives tit the United s conferences held in Mexico (I 975), Nairobi (1985) Beijing (1995), Beijing +5(2000) and Beijing +10(2005) have had a substantial impact on empowering women. The Nairobi and Beijing conferences propelled and deepened the cause of gender equality worldwide and underscored the multiple oppressions women face today. Although the principle of equal treatment for men and women has received considerable attention at national and international levels strategies to narrow down gender-gap have gained currency, inequality everywhere except in a few developed economies. Apart from accelerating s of gender equality, the efforts made in this direction by advanced countries through their programmes and policies should be taken note of.⁵

It is critical to recognise that gender ideology is not a universal phenomenon but dithers from place to place and country to country given the economic, religious and social situations. The Gender Gap Study released the World Economic Forum highlighted that under-developed countries lag behind in gender equality and further emphasised that only a handful of countries (Sweden, Norway, Iceland, Denmark and Finland) had a long tradition of social democracy and welfare systems which significantly narrowed the gender-gap and made enduring and substantial gains in the political arena.⁶

Women’s representation in Parliament in selected countries (Table 1 displays differences between socially developed and underdeveloped economies.

Table 1: Percentage of Women in National Parliaments

Source: Inter Parliamentary Union- World Regional Averages, 2006

The parliamentary elections in Rwanda brought the country to the top position in the world with the most number of women parliamentarians. With 48.8 percent of seats won by women, Rwanda beats Sweden which currently has 45.3 percent women in parliament (The Guardian, October 23, 2003). India and the United States present a contrasting picture — despite having the large women’s movements in terms of number, variety of organisations a membership size, the presence of women in political office is among the lowest in the world.

It is assumed that culture creates particular lifestyles that are derived from history and perceived traditions⁷. But culture in turn is shaped both by the individual and collective events of the epoch we live in. This means that culture is by no means static. Therefore the development sector must devise effective strategies to deal with culturally sensitive issues alongside indigenous social movements.⁸ Cultural uniformity is a sensitive issue especially in a multiethnic society. While we are proud to proclaim the merits of our secular state, it is bound to meet the aspirations of the citizens, particularly women. Despite the fact that ‘culture’ and debates about it have given birth to an entire discipline within the social sciences, it still remains an elusive concept to define in the contemporary social and political scenario.

Studies reveal that women’s under-representation in India points to the critical role of caste system in the community. It has been observed that caste influences the attitudes of’ women and that women belonging to the forward castes are more likely to adopt positions similar to those of men. It is exactly the opposite with women of the lower castes. Hence, community, religion and sex play a vital role and are primary aspects of social relationships that influence people’s experience of citizenship.

Given the strict regime of social restrictions, the pattern of hierarchical, caste-based systems which discriminate against women belonging to minority communities and underprivileged groups, it is hardly surprising that there is virtually no motivation for discussion and involvement in the political process. As a result, women become victims of atrocities in the absence of moral ethics as well as in the increasing rigidity of social norms and deterioration of the law and order situation. It is important to note that social movements will be failing their commitment if divisive politics is not combated at the social level itself. Until and unless social structures promote liberal thinking and assure social dignity to all, women will be ignored in the social development sector and this will have serious implications.

Sensitising policy makers on equal gender participation is a step towards attaining positive gender representation. However, progress should not lead to injustice and oppression. What is surprising is that gender inequality and under-representation are not taken note of in ensuring gender balance. Social reformers and feminists have had a significant impact in these efforts to redefine the meanings of gender and tradition and to get laws enacted for human development.

The challenge and disruption of old patriarchal relationships that constructed women as private or communal property and men as the natural of all power in our societies are indicative of the emergence of a ‘post-colonial’ consciousness among women, and also among poor men who are challenging in the neo-colonial state from where they are located as workers peasants and homeless/landless persons and will form the core of a sustainable globalisation strategy in the future.⁹

A significant portion of gender discrimination stems from within families that are primary sites of perpetuation of such inequality. Families, societies, demand equal participation by men and women and if there is inequality, it may lead to serious repercussions. This being the fact, men cannot be held wholly responsible because social relationships are shaped by economic and social forces, factors which have been ignored for several decades.

Even today, societal perceptions are rooted in a traditional division of labour, where women are confined to the family with diverse responsibilities. The multiple roles played by women present them from realizing their potential and taking part in the decision-making process. Thus, the social structure habitually restricts women’s natural leadership qualities which are supposed be the key components of politics. While a few families are willing to relax some restrictions on women and are supportive of their politic al aspirations, multiple burdens of women make it difficult for them to find the spare time required for sustained political activity. These obstacles stand in the way of personality development and improvement of self-confidence.

Women have been victims of oppression and exploitation and their pitiable situation is reflective of strict social regimes. As the increasing rigidity of the hierarchical, caste-based system means more control and oppression of women and deterioration in law and order, crimes against women increase. While women within a community may experience a wide range of differences in their status, individual women encounter considerable changes in their political position consequent to changing kinship status. Women who can negotiate an independent space for themselves at home are more likely to be active participants in political life.

Nation building can be achieved only if all citizens irrespective of gender enjoy the right to education. The literacy rate of women in India is 48% compared to the 68% among men and the low literacy is a major factor that affects the progress of women. Education is an important aspect which empowers women in society, enabling them to understand and realise their rights — economic, social and political. Nation-wide literacy programmes have been launch facilitate education to all sections of society. It is a shocking fact that India ranks 57^th in the world order in the Education of women and the rate of high school dropout among girl children is at the higher end. Low literacy levels among girl children and wage inequality are some of the key reasons for India’s abysmal ranking.¹⁰ The situation can only get worse with cuts in education budgets and increase in fees. The gender-gap in education is 86 females for every 100 males at the primary level and 68 at the secondary level.

Women stand to gain considerably, through education: they can remain healthy, control birth rate, enjoy economic independence and reduce poverty levels. But in India women’s literacy level stands at a mere 45-48% when compared with the 68% among men. Despite national literacy campaigns and UN’s Millennium Goal, and the pledge to eliminate gender disparities in primary and secondary education, the level of literacy has not improved. In order to encourage women’s political participation and to help them attain leadership positions, educating women is essential. It is also a good investment which will fetch high returns. What is the system that should be adopted for accelerating the process by which all women and girls attain education? For ensuring women’s decisive role in politics, especially at the top decision making levels which requires an understanding of and involvement in deliberations and tracing of policies, education is crucial. What I would like to highlight here is that it welfare states robust governments encourage its citizens to attain meaningful education, it will have better impact on overall national growth.

According to the UNDP 1995 Human Development Report, out of the developing world’s 900 million illiterate people, women outnumber men at the ratio of 2:1 and girls constitute the majority of the 130 million children without access to primary school.¹¹ Recently, the Supreme Court’s intervention forced many states to adopt the Tamil Nadu model of midday meal schemes in schools, which over the last quarter century has greatly increased the access to education for girl children and groups that were beyond the pale of caste society earlier.¹²

In a similar fashion, the Karnataka Government has introduced the developing of encouraging children to attend schools through such schemes. It is easy to exaggerate the impact of positive development but it is far from fulfilment. Until public institutions create a favourable environment for providing proper education, equitable growth is unimaginable.

The United Nations Commission on the Status of Women held in March viewed 10 years Beijing Platform for Action (B+ 10) on Millennium Declaration and Development Goals (MDGs) to eliminate gender disparity in primary and secondary education preferably by the end of 2005 and at all levels by 2015. The agenda of bringing women’s perspectives back into the forefront of’ dialogue in national and global arena is another objective.¹³ The low literate states should avail the facility of international support in addition to national programmes.

Paradoxically, only one-tenth of the elite of the female population attain full education and training compete on an equal footing with their counterparts and take independent decisions in the process. Due to lack of awareness, women are unable to make independent choices even in the matter of casting votes. Illiteracy and social practices need to be discussed, with specific reference to different groups. For example, women belonging to the economically poorer strata of the society may not be as concerned about laws relating succession to property as they would be about harassment in the family of their birth, or of their in-laws. Had women been empowered with education special focus on rural areas, we would have attained not less than 75 percent literacy by now.

That we have very few women in the premier professions is indicative of the fact that only those from the higher strata who have privilege to education gain entry into professional services (Table 2) and the underprivileged women face unemployment or underemployment. Women who were given opportunities to acquire the necessary skills and education have proven themselves capable of high achievement without any special measures offered to facilitate their entry. So, it is only discriminatory attitude which prevents women from accessing proper education. Thus two factors—orthodoxy in families and lack of strategic policy in institutions — are responsible for marginalising women.

Table 2: Comparative Statement of Men/Women in Premier Services

Low literacy has imparted women badly. They lack general awareness about opportunities to health care, family size and employment generation. Several studies show that women who have completed primary school have fewer children than those with no education. Attaining full education and good mental health are the indicators of enhanced status of women. Numerous studies show that investing in the education of women has good returns. Women at the top decision-making levels in the government can enhance the literacy level of s girl child, improve child nutrition and health and moderate family incomes (World Bank 2001).

India occupies the 34^th place in the world with regard to substantive care health awareness programmes. There is a substantial increase in female mortality rates and our women-men ratio stands at 927:1000 as per national census of 1991. Enhanced female education is the best way to effect reduction infant mortality rates and ensure gender equality. In India, the population of women is fewer than men by about 32 million, thus giving rise to Amartya Sen’s famous question “Where are all the missing women?” If the present scene continues with increased female mortality, the proposal for proportional representation of true-third reserved seats in Parliament and State Legislatures will become a meaningless struggle.¹⁴

The questions about declining sex ratio and rising gender-gaps can only be answered with more legislations giving greater emphasis to policies favouring children’s health.¹⁵ As healthy women improve the quality of life in a number of ways, legislations in favour of women can tackle the irregularities in the system and work for the advancement of women in the political process as well.

Violence against women, women’s political participation and their participation in civil life are closely linked. Violence acts as a barrier for women in decision-making both at home and community. For example, domestic violence affect the mental health of women and cause low self-esteem, anxiety and which hamper their involvement in public life. Conversely, women’s isolation from public and community life will lead to more violence, whereas enhanced awareness of social issues and public involvement in community groups will considerably lower the degree of violence against them. It will create an awareness in them to seek for support and solutions such as legal protection, counselling and advice to the many problems they have to face. Hence, social activities and social movements led by women’s organisations should be promoted to complement their work in civil and political participation in order to reduce violence against women and ensure long term benefits.

All over the world, women have secured a strong political foothold in those societies where institutions function according to well-defined democratic norms; where crime, violence, and overall corruption levels are low. Where decision-making is not concentrated in the hands of a few men, women actively participate in local governance without becoming full-time politicians. But they remain politically marginalised, except in a few instances, as in the U. S., where women enjoy relatively more freedom.

Women with scarce resources are considered an economic liability. Although, a major recommendation of many international gatherings is that both political parties as well as governments should set apart funds exclusively for women, it will take time for streamlining the procedure. The changing economic scenario that entails reduction in the withdrawal of subsidies in the public distribution system, primary health and education has increased the hardship of poor women. In effect, low literacy among women leads to lack of employment opportunities for them in the organised sectors, and also for their marginal in the unorganised sectors. This results in low income for women, in spite of Equal Remuneration Act.

Poverty is seen as a major impediment because women’s main concern is earning their daily livelihood. The policies of globalisation, liberalisation and privatisation have greatly undermined the economic status of women. The inequalities deprive women of the opportunity of political participation.¹⁶ Above all, the economic independence is a pre-requisite for women’s advancement their attainment of political freedom.

Even though women and the poor may have the numeral strength in a democracy, their interests are neither protected nor their demands met. In many democracies, campaign donations and the influence of money curtail the influence of the poor. Secondly, the poor and the vulnerable may be less informed or have lower efficacy, thus resulting in reduced voter turnout.¹⁷ Middle income or high income individuals do not face these information or efficacy problems, result in a higher voter turnout on an average, than their lower-income counterparts. If there is a high aggregate voter turnout, it is usually a result of high voter turnout among the low-income subgroup, since the voter turnout for the upper income group is already high. To summarise, a high voter turnout usually means more low-income people voted.¹⁸

Another priority of low-income category, relative to other income group is their stronger preference for social development. If these generalisations have been true in India, higher voter turnout would have more easily put forward as social development agenda.¹⁹ Hence, national income influences women’s access to formal politics as shown in Figure 1. It is assumed that women in developed countries where source of income is higher will tend to benefit from higher human capital, as also that democratic institutions and accountability are better entrenched in developed countries than in developing or transnational countries.

Figure 1- Women’s Presence in National Parliaments: Change in averages by level of income

Source: IPU 2004 (UN Statistical Division 2004; UN 2003)

In contrast, the world’s wealthiest country, the United States, suffers from consistently lesser number of women representatives, whereas the wrold’s poorest countries, such as Rwanda and Mozambique, have higher participation of women in politics as shown in Table 1. The empowerment of women in some countries high per capita income, such as some ofthe oil producing states, disproves the commonly held belief about the status of women in those countries. In Sweden, which has a high per capita income and high standard of living is hailed as a model for other nations of the world with its policies of gender equality. With its 45.5% female parliamentary representation, there are still many instances of atrocities committed against women. It is worse still to imagine the case of developing countries.

Nevertheless, the autonomy women have gained from the relative security of their economic independence is commendable. What types of remedial measures are to be adopted to make women economically viable groups? In my opinion, chances are remote for an ordinary citizen to gain political power, unlike the elite classes of society. What I woul d like to state is that economic empowerment of women with maximum possible avenues has to begin from the family and subsequently extend to public institutions. The movement for gving women their due and focusing on the larger issues of the social and economic empowerment must continue. The strength of this movement lies in it extended beyond women to embrace the entire society, which will ensure that the initial steps towrdas achieveing gender equality will be taken.²⁰ Let us hope the amendment to the ‘Women’s Succession Act 1956’ as ‘Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act 2005’ will create avenues for gaining economic stability.

If the critique of macro-economic policies ia about equity, what better response can be there be but to put political power in the hands of those most discriminated against, that is, women? It is all more important that economic empowerment measures go beyond mere catch-phrases and seriously address women’s concerns. Though concerted efforts havebeen made in the direction of national economic development, the transformation of our nation as granting equal status to women as well as making them a strong presence in a cohesive political entity have proved to be a difficult challenge.

While women’s contribution to the cause of nation building execeeds that of men, the benefits shared among women is far below when compared to the extent it is enjoyed by men. An International Labour Organisation study shows that while women represent 50 percent of the world’s adult population and of the official labour force, they perform nearly two-third of all working hours, receive a tenth of world income and own less than one percent of world property. These issues may perhaps be rectified if women are given proportional presentation in the legislative bodies.²¹

Women assuming power is thus not only a matter of equity but correcting an unjust and unrepresentative system. Nevertheless, it is important to distinguish between equality of opportunity and equality of rewards. In general terms, equality of opportunity implies equal rights to seek power, right remuneration. Women so far have been striving for equality of opportunity to seek power. Equality of reward, on the other hand, implies not only the potential of power, position and remuneration but the actual realisation and acquisition of power, rights and, remuneration. This is where the conflict for women, who have struggled for power in the recent times, lies.

With the government with its rhetoric of being accountable for social development claims to be responsive to the needs of the electorate, the empirical reality is that widespread poverty and illiteracy still persists even after 50 years of independence. The questions raised as to what extent can the electorat or political process shape social development for women are crucial and important.²² Each state should play a key role in championing women’s rights as the State ot Kerala which has emerged as a model on equal rights to land other advanced social indicators.²³

In the developing countries of the South, the challenges for human development in general, and women’s development in particular are poverty and illiteracy. With reference to this, the Beijing Declaration (1995), for example, links women’s participation in institutional politics with their empowerment in the social and economic life. The empowerment and autonomy of women and the provement of women’s social, economic and political status is essential for achievement of both transparent and accountable government and administration and sustainable development in all areas of life. According to beijing +10 UN Conference (2005), in India alone 260.3 million people living low poverty lines are women. This poverty is aggravated as a result of the economic reforms introduced by globalisation which casualised women’s labour and limited the production entitlements on natural resources.

It is even more significant that new areas of gender discriminations have emerged in the era of globalisation, which has further cut down women’s economic power. National barriers are being dismantled in all the realms, but in the realm of culture and social practice, care is being taken to preserve and attach value to all that has existed for centuries and millennia. The globalisation act has further narrowed down women’s involvement in economic activities. Both public and private sector units are demanding knowledge-based manpower. Would they be able to resist and combat this imperialistic view of globalisation? The lesson for India as well as for other developing countries is to evolve a policy of developing a wide and open knowledge-based economy. At this juncture, it is difficult to know whether this kind of an economy originates out of a genuine concern for cultural diversity and pluralism, or whether it is part of a strategy to facilitate the smooth globalisation of capital. ²⁵

The process of globalisation in the new millennium has led to serious divides like the gender, economic and digital. The advanced countries are deriving benefits from the new economy based on technology and information, but the world countries are marginalised in their socio-economic set-up. Despite increased awareness, the rich-poor divide in economic well-being is growing. The most effective way is to empower villages with technology and information, providing network facilities for increasing awareness and self-confidenceof socially and economically underprivileged women. More significantly, measures should be taken for sustainable development bridging the digital divide to promote gender and social equality, generation of employment opportunities and the economic viability of micro-enterprises supported by micro-finance. The priority of the administration should be to focus on equitable growth in tune with the times. In the era of globalisation, the lesson for India and the other developing countries is that they should initially strengthen and enhan the governmental support systems rather than dismantling them in the name market efficiency.

A major concern is that the paradigm shift generated by globalisation adversely impacted the rural areas when the central government started adapting itself to the newer environment to meet the international standards. By doing so it violated the sanctity of democratic values and women are now caught in state of poverty. Hence, a better understanding of the tools is essential to find out where dysfunctions tend to be high. However, it requires various measures such as awareness generation, resource management and capacity building for correcting imbalances. How far this initiative will help in ensuring a proper distribution of powers is a moot point.

To conclude, the negative impact of globalisation is that the co-relation between globalisation and self-government developmental autonomy is an issue that has to be approached in a dialectical manner because it steadily undermines the potential of the autonomous path of development. Keeping in view the share of local bodies, government expenditure in India is only around a quarter of the ratio in most of the developed countries. Democratic mechanisms have also been negatively impacted upon by globalisation at the States prioritise the demands of international financial institutions and multi-national corporations over the demands of local constituencies.

The political barriers that women face today are combinations of cultural and socio-economic factors. The impact of these factors on our polity goes beyond marginalising women politically. In spite of the widespread movement towar democratisation in most countries, women are largely under-represented at most levels of government, especially the ministerial and executive bodies. Among Asian countries, China ranks highest (33), followed by Japan while India, at 53 is virtually at the bottom of the ladder. The male domination in the politic parties constrain women at the decision making levels. The percentage of wom representatives appointed by various political parties at the top level committe is considerably low when compared to the total members present (Table 3).

Table 3: Percentage of Women’s Presence in Top Decision Making Committess

Source: Manushi (96), September- October 1996, p.27

*The seventh member is a candidate member who participates in discussions but does not vote.

** Normally the state President of the JD women’s wing is invited to attend and offer suggestions, but she does not have a vote. Even this invitation depends upon the wishes of the party President or of the President of the Parliament Board.

*** Total number of members varies due to visitors.

Women in small numbers cannot make a platform exclusively for women, unless they are mobilised in greater numbers in electoral and party politics. These women are considered to be an ineffective minority. Hence, increased numbers of women at the committees are necessary as effective promoters of the women’s agenda. Otherwise, political parties tend to reflect on the prevailing conditions of the society than accept or promote women candidacy in their echelons.

Even veteran women politicians find it difficult to establish a foothold without patronage from the powerful men in the party. The political sphere traditionally remained the stronghold of men, whereas women are relatively late entrants to the political arena. Besides, women’s movements are so engaged in the micro-realities of women’s lives, including personal power relations, that shift to macro-realities that formal political engagement implies would take time and a certain level of organisational and political maturity.

Nonetheless, the task of redefining politics is well underway and the vibrancy of the process is reflected in the fact that many women come to politics from different starting points. Hence, sharing the experiences of veteran men and women will help develop a political base for the new entrants. The relevance of creating a strong pre-woman commitment and belief within all media institutions is a determinant of gender relations and empowerment. In the absence of these variables., it can be said that vibrant and extensive participation by women is not possible, but for a few exceptions listed below:

Political Antecedents by Women: An Overview

There is indeed a widespread social opinion in favour of women’s active political participation. The participation of women in politics is always debatable issue in Indian politics. Whether politics gives them the empowerment, or empowerment means active participation in politics is always a difficult question to answer. Women’s empowerment refers to the process by which they acquire due recognition on par with men — ‘as a partner with human dignity’²⁶— and participate in the development process of the society through politic institutions.

There are a few instances where women have developed an independent political base and are able to compete with men in electoral politics because their undivided attention to pol itics and their refusal to be cowed down b scandals. Such representatives have had to wage relentless battles within they respective parties for dug recognition, popularity, mass appeal and organisation skills, which are often resented by their male colleagues. Such women politician have mostly emerged triumphant because they have ardent supporters. But none of these women have the clout, yet their popularity have earned for the respectable posts within their parties.

The career graph of some prominent women in power politics is testimony that women can become corrupt and authoritarian when they occupy positions of power which demand little or no accountability. Such a category serves neither the cause of women nor that of society. They are as harmful as men in politics. The presence of such prominent women is neither praiseworthy nor commendable. Given the way in which party selection systems eliminate outspoken feminists as an electoral liability, it is not surprising to find women politicians not advocating these concerns. These political leaders have neither attempted to address women’s concerns and gender equity issues effectively in mainstream politics nor tried to mobilise women into a political force, which can then pressurise political system to be more sensitive to women’s agenda. The notion prevailing is that like any other male politician, women too address only those issues related to their constituency or to their parties. Representing traditional social groups or conservative parties, bringing up issues of gender equality may not be in their agenda.

Those women representatives who enter into politics on the basis of dynastic clout, political alliance etc., and those few with their extraordinary resilience, courage and the capacity to withstand character assassination, get to be treated with special awe and reverence in our country. Such representatives rarely attacked on account of their gender and no fuss made over their assuming the highest political office.

Women’s representation in political sphere in the present day context is declining both in quality and quantity compared with the situation that prevailed in the pre-colonial struggles. Qualitatively, in the post-colonial period, women’s participation is declining due to trivialisation, malpractices and constraints they have to face because of men, money and muscle power. A woman operating on her own strength in a party, which is full of corrupt male-politicians who are out to slander her, will find the going very tough, even if by her own efforts she mobilises other compensatory resources. These factors keep women out of leadership positions, but they function at the margins, at best relegated to the domain of social work. In terms of quantity, the declining trend of women’s participation in politics refers to their under-representation considering the size of women’s population. Women’s sporadic involvement declined from 1970s (Table 4).

Table 4: Percentage of Women Representation in Parliament 1952-2005

Note CSDS Data Unit

Source: India, Ministry of Human Resource Development, Department of Women and Child Development. (2004). Government of India, II & IIIrd Periodic Report on Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women : CEDAW Periodic Report. New Delhi. P. 86.

*The composition of Rajya Sabha changes every two years. We have picked only those years which allow comparison with Lok Sabha. The average for Rajya Sab is based on these years only.

In the May 2004 general election to the l4th Lok Sabha, only 44 out of 545 candidates were women. The low number of elected women prompted the Election Commission to write to the government about the need for providing adequate representation for women.

While Table 4 shows the stagnant representation of women in the Lok Sabha since Independence, the declining status ot women’s representation in the State Legislatures in select States is shown in Table 5 (a) and (b). There is very little progress in women attaining political power in legislative bodies, as against the levels by 1995. Despite socio-economic and political transformations, percentage of women remained on an average 4.1% up to the year 1999.

Table 5 (a)- Percentage of Women MLAs in State Legislatures 1952-1999 (%)

Source: CSDS Data Unit

– : States did not exist; NE : No elections held in that year.

*: Two elections held during this period. The figure given here is an average of the two.

**: In 1952 the Election Commission did not recognise women as a separate

Category.

The figures given here are based on name recognition and hence liable to under-reporting of women representatives.

A smaller proportion of women in the Lok Sabha is replicated in State Legislative Assemblies. The puzzling feature is that in a few states women experience better quality of life in accessing resources, but remain marginalising a few instances, of differences of culture plays an important role in determining levels of women’s participatitin, as is demonstrated by data from the states Kerala and Rajasthan. They are culturally divergent, but they share a common electoral system. Kerala has a matrilineal tradition in which women have a much larger measure of autonomy and freedom of movement. Though women have shown a high degree of achievement in introducing Bills and actively participating in the debates and deliberations, they do not have sufficient participation in State Legislatures. Thus in spite of a favourable stand in gender concerns there is less faith in the political process.

Family and education have been taken as two major determinants to examine the political participation of women. These two variables have been chosen because they are significantly related to the political participation women, and are considcred enabing as well as hindering factors. A comparison between the states of Kerala and Rajasthan, whose literacy rates are at opposite ends of the spectrum, demonstrates this clearly. In Kerala, the overall literacy rate is reportedl y 90 percent with 86 percent terrible literacy. In contrast, in Rajasthan, female literacy is a mere 20 percent and only 12 percent of the females are literate in rural areas. However, women’s educational advantage in Kerala has not propelled them into politics in greater numbers than in Rajasthan. The percentage of women in the Kerala Legislative Assembly rose from zero in 1952 to four percent in 1999 vis-à-vis in Rajasthan, where the representation rose from zero to five percent as indicated in Table 5 (a). The cultural and educational advantages women have in Kerala have not translated into higher political participation.

It is exactly the opposite in Rajasthan where women live far more resticted in aggressively patriarchal communities. A sizeable proportion of the population is illiterate. Many communities still practice purdah system and child marriage. Yet women representation is higher in Rajasthan when compared that of Kerala. The truth is that matriarchal system does not lead to adequate representation or patriarchal system to under-representation. The status of women has not changed much after the polls held in 2000 onwards till date (Table 5 (b)) in some states.

Table 5 (b): Percenatge of Women In State Legislative Assemblies

Source CPA

It was presumed that low literacy was the main cause for women’s under- representation until the government achieved moderately good educational levels with the help of various literacy missions. Though education is considered to be a factor, it has no relevance in popular or under-representation. Education and culture are at the opposite ends of the political spectrum. But education plays a predominant role in understanding multiple dimensions of politics, especially decision making levels and in disseminating ideas particularly in the era of information, technology and communication.

In the states of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Gujarat, and, Chattisgarh and Bihar which went to the polls in 2004, the number of female contestants were lesser when compared to men. Sometimes there were no female candidates at all. The data pertaining to 2004 election reveals that the reluctance of political parties to field reasonably good numbers of women is linked to conservative approaches.

At the preliminary stage itself, political parties shortlist women candidates in fixed numbers. Further screening reduces the number of candidates and ultimately we see fewer women in the field than the number listed before elections. The political parties are not willing to field women in sufficient number. The fact remains that women have a long way to go for even contesting in reasonably good numhers.

The evidence from post-election surveys shows that Indian electoral politics is still the domain of men. Research indicates that primarily the electoral system plays an important role in determining gender participation on lists. Modifying the organisational design and the agenda of political parties is the next step in giving due consideration to women in party politics. These show that women’s representation in politics requires special attention.

At times political parties are generous in fielding women in constituencies where they have less hope of success. The motive behind ‘generous view’ is to consolidate seats as much as possible to become the singele largest party for proving majority and at this juncture women may turn out fortunate and successful candidates.

The scenario of ‘women’s representation since the first Lok Sabha elections has a remarkable point when we compare the percentage of male and female candidates who have been successful in the elections. The success ratio of contesting in the elections is relatively higher than that of men (Table 6). There is a persistent belief that inclusion of women in the political process or governance would change the way in which the politics of development is carried out.

Table 6: Percentage of Contestants Vs Success Ratio by Gender

Source: Election Commission of India

Women are supposed to be more concerned about the common good, less corrupt and more cooperative. Hence. the political effectiveness of women is appreciable in terms of responsiveness and accountability. This clearly proves that women candidates are not suffering any discrimination at the hands of voters. If anything, it is a positive discrimination in favour of women.

Given the scenario, the national debate and efforts to provide constitutional and legal mechanism to enhance women’s participation in legislatures are welcome and long overdue. The Alternative Bill proposes to amend the Representation of the People Act, 1951, to make mandatory for every recognised political party to nominate women candidates in one-third of the constituencies. Women’s proportional representation in legislative bodies contribute to defining political priorities, transforming women into political agents, placing new items on the political agenda that reflect and address gender specific issues, concerns, values and experiences, and providing new perspectives on mainstream political issues. There is a legitimate concern that electoral quotas are not really long term solution but create an environment for women to rise to political power by virtue of their own right irrespective of men’s support. Several research results indicate that proportional representation systems are most conducive to women’s legislative presence. Out of a total of 174 countries for which statistics were available in 2003, those with electoral systems based on proportional resentation returned assemblies with an average of 1 6 percent women politicians, while disproportional representation with multi-party system returned assemblies with 11 percent women politicians. The experience with proportional representation illustrates the way in which variations in institutional rules can have gender-specific impacts, whether intended or otherwise.

The systems are designed to encourage the representation of diverse intersts, and have proved more open to women’s participation than either plural majority systems. In the latter, electoral contest provides an incentive for parties to front the safest candidate, usually a representative of ‘the common man’. In proportional systems where a particular party is strong and can expect a number of its candidates elected, more women candidates tend to be fronted. However, there is still considerable variation in the proportions of women elected to assemblies and some countries consistently return tiny proportions of women to their legislatures. Thus the choice of electoral system cannot alone provide sufficient explanation for different country experiences. This confirms number of variables influence women’s electoral prospects, including the political culture and the nature of political parties. Their links with activist women’s organisations may be weak or non-existent. This issue is particularly important in view of current discussions about the overall role and functioning of political parties, and the concerns being raised about the political viability and popularity of such vehicles in the face of emerging alternative political entities, such as the NGOs.

At the level of national legislature, the proportional representation system is most favourable to women.²⁷ In proportional representation, political parties compile a list of candidates where people vote for the party, rather than a candidate, and the party is apportioned seats according to the share of women.²⁸ This can be beneficial to women, as voters can mentally apply no tests of fitness for office based on gender to female candidates. More important parties often add women to their lists as a means of broadening their electoral appeal.²⁹

Few studies have contradicted Rule’s original finding of the significance of proportional representation with regard to women’s share in legislatures, while other studies have expanded on the effect of other variables. Proportional representation remains a consistent and important factor in determining the gender balance of Parliaments.³⁰

lt is a fact that when representatives are freely elected by universal franchise, the proportion of women’s representation is an indicator of changing attitudes in the society. The statistics of elections reveal that the state does come forward to field contestants proportionately. But women mobilise and put pressure to ensure that political parties increased the number of women candidates.

Just as the presence of female candidates in the party list is critical to women’s actual political representation, the design of the party quota is also crucial. If the quota is simply for the number of candidates a party must put forth, there is no guarantee that all the female candidates will be elected. However, if the quota calls for a number of seats in legislature, a minimum proportion of female representation is guaranteed.³¹

Political Empowerment and Women: An Evolution of Panchnyati System

Panchayats have been the backbone of the Indian villages since beginning of history. Grass-roots level democracy visualised in terms of reliant and self-governing villages was an important nationalist ideal. West Bengal was the first state that took advantage of adopting the Panchayati System in their political administration in 1937. Gandhiji in 1946 had aptly observed that Indian Independence must begin at the gross-roots level and every village ought to be a Republic with the Panchayat having powers.

Decentralisation is a process of Extension and deepening the system of political democracy. The prevalence of strongholds of tradition and patriarchal system in the villages counteracts against women’s participation. The extension of parliamentary democracy from the central and state levels to the district and lower level would open up possibilities of more direct participation of the masse in a day to day governance. Such grass-roots level democracy is favourable to mobilisation and defence of the interests of the exploited and weaker sections. The amendments did not only respond to a growing po litical demand for greater decentralisation of power after a crisis or governance at the Centre in lndian politics in the 1990s, but also to the emerging potentials of women’s groups for greater visibility in political administration.

While making constitutional laws, elected local bodies were not made part of the mandatory structure of government, but were enshrined in the Constitution. The ideal of ‘Gramaswaraj’ and its legal administrative form, the elected panchayats, have remained constitutional ideals generated by all and practiced by none. Several attempts have been made for effective decentralisation on socio-economic and political grounds but with limited success. It was in is this context that support grew for a Constitutional Amendment to prescribe uniform structure to the local bodies throughout the country and make periodic factions constitutionally mandatory. The empowerment of women was necessitated to allow them to tackle their special problems as well as create awareness about the local problems.

The critical initiative in women’s political empowerment came from Ramakrishna Hegde’s government in Karnataka in the mid nineteen-eighties. This government introduced the Panchayati Raj Act with provision for 25% reservation for women under the three-tier system in Grama and Mandal Panchayats and Zilla Parishads. It was this Act that inspired Rajiv Gandhi to bring in a similar law. Mindula Sinha credits this unprecedented affirmative action to a supportive Rajiv Gandhi government, equally supportive political parties and, above all, the unity between women in NGOs and in political parties.

The notion emerged as an initiative to reframe the constitutional law with special phasis to bring women into political life and ensure that they are not neglected m political participation.

The objectives of the Panchayati Raj Act are:

• The 33% reservation under territorial constituencies is to increase female participation in recognition of stronger gender roles which enable women to complete for the popular vote rather than lobby for nomination by a party elite.

• The prevailing gender bias against women is pronounced in our society it is only through empowerment measures that women can be given their due and move towards equality. This implies that women have a different perspective, and that once elected women will take different steps than men would, thus reforming politics and improving the position of women.

• Others, including severely marginalised women, have taken the level of their participation much further to become women activists for the cause of women. Previous notions of having reserved seats for only one or for very few women, representing a vague and all-embracing category of ‘woman’, are longer considered sufficient.

In bringing rural areas under the Gramaswaraj , the Constitution Amendments initially drew severe opposition from various political parties.The bureaucratic governance in Indian polity does not devolve powers from central to state and vis-à-vis state to local government. Parties of the left have to be more strongly associated than those on the right with re-distributive and social justice, issues of concern to women’s movements. They have also traditionally have been more responsive to women’s issues and more willing to support women candidates for office and also promote gender equality and citizenship rights. To achieve justice and representative democracy, reservation is a successl tool. The remarkable point is that all political parties have co-operated to this legislation passed.

The most significant experiment in reforming governance in lndia from a democratic decentralisation point of view has been the introduction of constitutionally mandated Panchayati Raj System through the 73rd Amendment providing constitutional status to the Panchayati Raj institutions which was passed in 1992 and came into force on April 24, 1993.³² Subsequently, the 74th Constitutional Amendment Act introduced 33 percent Reservation for women in Corporations and Municipalities as per the constitutional provision.³³

The provisions enshrined in the Constitution is in a three-tier system Grama Panchayat, Mandal Panchayat and Zilla Parishad. The structural design of Panchayati Raj System is the striking feature for the advantage of women from socially disadvantaged and marginalised communities deprived of the experiences necessary tor development. There is a wide variation in the metho of election and number of members, as the details are decided by the State Legislatures and depend on the size and population of the States. lt has ensured one-third representation for women in the local bodies and one-third of the offices of chairpersons at all levels in rural and urban bodies for them (Matthew, 1997:25).

Structural Design: Three-tier System

The first tier – Gram Panchayat, is elected from and is responsible to the Gram Sabha or village assembly in which every adult male and female is a member. It is mainly in the nature of a deliberative body and is presided over by Pradhan or the Village Headman who is directly elected. The Panchayat is resided over by a Sarpanch or the Head of the Panchayat. The members are fled the ‘Parishes’. The Sarpanch can be directly or indirectly elected. This body has powers to decide both legal and developmental policies for the village. One panchayat may cover one or more villages, depending on the size of the pulation.

The second tier – Taluq, Mandal or Bloc Panchayats, also known as Panchayat Samitis or Aanchal Samitis in Arunachal Pradesh, are at the level of a cluster of villages and cover a number of panchayats, to coincide with the administrative divisions called Blocs. The members may be directly or indirectly elected. It has a Pramukh or the Chief and has representatives from all the panchayats. He or she may be indirectly elected.

The third tier, at the district level is the Zilla Parishad or the District Board that looks after the entire district. Its members may be directly or indirectly elected. Its chief or the Pramukh or the President is elected indirectly by the members.

Government Policy and Affirmative Action

• With the statutory reservation provision more than one million rural men have now assumed Panchayati Raj seats as members and one-third of them as chairpersons. The integration of women has evoked conflicting waves influence, excitement, public pronouncements, apprehensions and repercussions in social and political life. The initiative is an excellent lens to the participation of rural and poor women in local government.

• The Amendments have instituted structural changes in Indian polity in sense that it has created space for women. It also provides a thrust to women seeking an active role in public life. The elected members are from a cross- secion of society. They are participating in the Panchayat meetings for the first. This itself is a step forward in furthering their interests for it is not just privileged women who gain a voice in these institutions.

• The presence of a critical mass of women marks a radical change. The experience of mobilisation of women for gender justice has been a remarkable success story. Initiatives thus have paved a way to the process of devolution of power and strengthening of grassroots democracy by revitalising the role Panchayatshave in governance. The Gram Sabha, a voter’s assembly at village level has been recognised as the basis of democracy and every voter is considered a first class citizen.

The enormous expansion of women’s representation in decentralised government structure in India have led to the quantum leap of 33% reserved seats for women in about 3,30,000 local elected bodies. This had far-reaching implications in the first elections held in 1994, in the aftermath of the Constitutional Amendment. The possibility of more women candidates in subsequent elections (2006) was an overwhelming achievement at the Panchayati Raj institutions. The percentage of women’s participation under three-tier system through two consecutive elections from different States and Union Territories is given in Table-7. There is no noticeable change found in the States which went for polling in 2003. In 2006 elections held in several states, it is worth stating that the elected representatives are more than the mandatory provision, the highest proportion being 43%. It is worth mentioning that a few women moved out of reserved constituencies and contested on general nomination.

Sometimes, the political environment plays a dominant role. By contrast the percentage of women in West Bengal is far less, though it had adopted system in 1937, when compared with the other states that adopted the system much later. ln this regard, it is interesting to note that the genesis of constitutional mandate makes the difference. Given the opportunity, women effective and secure achievements beyond expectations. Thus the joint structure of women can change the prevailing mindset. Women’s experience on instruments of governance have resulted in reorienting the nation in the context of priorities

— providing drinking water, sanitation, education and income generation opportunities. Women have used their elected authority to address quality healthcare as a critical issue. Women’s intervention has been effective particularly in the eradication of liquor, protection of dignity, childcare and freedom from violence.

Table 7: Percentage of Women Represenatives in Panchayati Raj Institutions

To the maximum extent possible, a conducive enviroment has been created by (a) giving power to people and making the Panchayat bodies more powerful (b) ensuring accountability of official and non-official members strengthening the planning machinery (d) arranging for devolution of funds ensuring people’s participation in decision-making and so on. Women have a gained a sense of empowennent by asserting control over resources, officials and most of all by challenging men (Jain 1980; Anveshi 1993).

While these initiatives for women’s participation in politics are proven to be effective, they have not been able to guarantee a constantly conducive environment. Though the representatives are skeptic about their indcpendence and capabilities, they have demonstrated that they make crucial difference politics. In the process of implementation of the 73^rd and 74^th Amendmen considerable gaps have been noticed.

Constraints of the Provisions

Many obstacles still remain on the path of realisation of the Panchay Raj’s potential for transformation. The possibility of the economically well-off to gaining disproportionately in the political realm is not surprising. But it is not beneficial to the status of women nor does it further the goals of reservation. Both reservation and parity suffer from this criticism of domination by the upper class and upper caste women. The presence of women has been accused of increasing bourgeoisie power over the Panchayat system. While reservation could be observed as a valuable factor for mobilising women from across the different sections of the society, the onus on the institution of Panchayati Raj to verify the status of women and find ways and means to cater to their needs in stabilising economic disparities. It is to be further emphasised that the constraints are easier to address within a supportive and enabling environment creating wide-ranging, sustained Self Help Groups (SHGs).

Women’s governance at both rural and urban levels through elections is a new paradigm shift and the decision to legislate reservation of not less than one-third seats for women in the Parliament and state legislatures is an encouraging trend. But the multiple and expanding role played by elected representatives makes it impossible for them to exercise power and take decisive actions necessary in their constituencies. Ultimately, the members co-opted by dominant groups often become defenders of the status quo whether the group has pro-feminist or anti-feminist views. As a result, women may become appendages but not decision makers. The difference is qualitative as women experience it between the governance of civic society and that of the state. Consequently, local guvernance is making the state sensitive to issues of poverty, inequality and gender justice. The provision is detective and administrative functioning is dependent totally on the opinion provided by the state and central govemments. These issues should be best left to local bodies.

One-third of seats is reserved for women under the three-tier system and these constituencies rotate every five years, enabling a new set of constitucncies o choose a woman representative eacli time. The mandate that constituencies reserved for women would not be fixed, but would be rotated at random, has led to a very short-term view being taken by the elected representatives as they have no prospect of re-election. This is one attempt on the part of the State to control the Panchayats. However, the retention rates are low due to violence and criminal attitudes against women in local politics and the problem on sustaining women’s involvement long enough to make a significant impact is a difficult process. A responsive politician is one whose utility is maximised by contesting in subsequent elections from the same constituency, irrespective of the policies they implement. The officials at the local level are accountable to the elected representativcs and can ensure horizonta linkages and integrated programmes. It has been pointed out that the reservation of fixed percentage of constituencies for women and their rotation after every election are not feasible and could have destabilising effect on parliamentary democracy. The electoral process of rotating the constituency every five years is not feasible. The election should take place only once in ten years.

The decreasing accountability to local constituencies and high levels of corruption are further narrowing opportunities for women’s participation. Whereas demands for transparency and accountability can enhance the argument better monitoring of the impact of macro-policier on equal gender, and for sharing this information with a wider constituency. States have also been increasingly repressive of dissenting communities and organisations by restricting civil and political rights as is seen in the recent amendment to the Act to take away powers of the State Election Commission to dccide the constituencies and determine the rotation.

The 73^rd and 74^th Amendment Acts have created an enabling framework the state legislatures to enact the scope of actual devolution of power to the local bodies. Experience has been that the state govemments have been extremely miserly in the devolution of powers and resources to the newly formed local bodies due to the lack of any political will. The objectives of the decentralisation process and delegatitin of powers to local self governing bodies envisaged the amendments have been deviated from.

Sometimes, the Election Commissions has to fight a long battle against the State Governments in order to fulfill their constitutional duty to hold elections ontime as per the provisions of law. In order to ensure the responsibility of states in the timely conduct of Panchayat and Municipal elections, it is assumed that the Commissions should function independent ot State Governments to hold elections, keeping in view the geographical area as well as size of the population. The political approaches often yield to highly personalised leadership practies based on dynasties. Similarly, resources, seats and positions are determined by patronage, without reference to systems of transparency or internal accountability.

To be precise, women gain autonomy and experience in local governance their excellent performance and success in reaching the objective of equitable growth in general and Gramaswaraj in particular is commendable and deserve applause. If the same strategy is extended for women to reach State Legislature and Parliament, women in political administration could transform politics for the common good. There is a demand for special consideration to combat inequality which dominates the political parties and government.

A Glimpse of the Women’s Reservation Bill

The ninth plan had brought a ‘National Policy for the Empowerment of Women (NPEW).’ Initially, it discussed the socio-economic conditions, health, nutrition, environment,violence on women, The policy reserved 30% seats of women at every stage of legislature. According to this the rationale of enhanced representation of all groups of society into legislative bodies would logically be extended to all under-represented groups relating to economic status, race, caste, religion and ethnicity.

Further, enhanced participation of women could formulate a platform to ensure the positive representation of women in political, developmental decision-making forums. Hence, the necessity of claiming reservation of 33% seats for women in Parliament and State Legislatures was formulated in 1989. Given the scenario, the national debate and efforts to provide legal mechanisms to enhance women’s participation in State Legislatures is long overdue.

Constitutional Amendment

The proposed legislation to reserve 33.3% seats in Parliament and State Legislatures for women was drafted by the government led by the United Front on 12 September 1996, through the 84^th Constitutional Amendment. The major national parties, Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party (BHP), the Janata Dal and Communist parties have committed themselves to reserving seats in legislatures for women by including this promise in their respective election manifestos.

The 85^th Amendment Bill was tabled in Dccember 1999 seeking reservation with a broad consensus about enhancing women’s representation one-third of seats in the Lok Sahha and the Vidhan Sabhas. Further, provision for SCs and STs and rotation of seats reserved for women were the aspects emphasised. The rotation was to be determined by draw of lots, in such a manner that a seat shall be reserved only once in a block of three General Elections.

Provisions of the Government Bill

The 85^th constitutional Amendment Bill, introduced in the Lok Sabha in December 1999, includes the following key provisions:

• One-third of all seats in the Lok Sabha a and the Vidhan Sabhas shall be reserved for women.

• Such rescevation shall also apply in the case of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs.)

• There shall be a rotation of seats so reserved for women.

• Such rotation shall be determined by draw of lots, in such a manner that a seat shall be reserved only once in three consecutive general elections.

Commitment under Common Minimum Programme

The Common Minimum Programme agreed upon by various parties comprising the UPA government starts its section entitled ‘Social Justice’ with declaration that ‘one-third of the elected membership in Parliament and State islatures will be reserved for women. All laws will be reviewed to remove provisions which discriminate against women.’ The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in one of its manifestoes for good governance has laid emphasis on ‘fully empowering women politically, educationally, economically and legally.’

Though successive governments³⁴ have emphasised similar objectivcs to pass the ‘Women Reservation Bill,’ this has evoked a great deal of resistance and contrary views due to lack of political consensus. The debate has finally brought the grim truth into sharper focus that no leader has so far denied the Bill directly; instead they are being rhetorical about creating an egalitarian society passing the Bill. The political twist within the parties is a stumbling block meeting the agenda as and when the Bill is tabled. The reform is caught in an impasse due to the subsequent debate under the broad categories of the caste and gender aspects of social inequality.

Reservation within Reservation

In the original form, reservation for hierarchy based structures within the community of women was not included. The debate on the matter cantered on reservation within reservation. The majority of men opposing the Bill belong to backwad castes that are numerically powerful but are often educationally and economically backward. The assumption is that in communities which had been making significant gains on their own during the last decade or so, reservation for women would make them lose many of their seats to upper caste women.

The male members assert that a large section of existing women parliamentarians are high caste and from elite families. This has led to confrontations between women and backward caste political leaders, which often assume ugly forms.³⁵

It has been observed that all dominant social sections in the society are over-represented in the legislatures. It is contradictory to the principle of equality in the Indian Constitution if the interests of women are isolated from those of other economic, social and religious identities prevalent in our Indian polity are delicate issues, particularly in a secular state.

The population of SC and ST women is estimated to be around 16% and 8% respectively of the total population. The general category women would come to 24% as is shown in Figure-2. While the Bill provides reservation for SC participation of the backward classes and minorities. Unless, the provision for all sections of society is made mandatory, the political parties have more choice about the seats reserved for women, where they stand a reasonably fair chance of success. The agitation regarding backward class and minorities are not properly safeguarded. The Bill originally proposed is in favour of only the affluent section of women and this will deprive sections from reaching the Parliament and Legislatures. This is quite evident from the previous section- Status of Women during Post Independence. While it is significant to ensure egalitarianism to embrace all sections of women empowerment in the society, compartementalising reservation based on legal mechanism is important.

Figure 2- Social Structure vs. Women population Size

While making Constitutional law, a provision was made for scheduled caste and tribes with the objective of improving their socio-economic status at par with the upper class in the socicty. Then, only two categories were considered based on social and economic conditions as upper and lower classes. I would like to stress that such an approach that existed then with a fair view to challenge differences and imbalance between the rich and the poor, be extended for OBCs and the minorities. Over a period of 55 years, a number of changes have taken place folliwing changes in the socio-economic situations. Hence, it is wrong to assume that only SCs and STs succumb to vulnerabilities when compared with the upper middle class blessed with strong economic backgrounds.

I fully agree with categorical reservation for advancing and protecting women in all sections of society as there is already resentment about backward underprivileged class women experiencing a tough time when they enter politics. A significant point to be taken into consideration is that while allotting reservation, one must bear in mind that fielding the requisite number of women candidates is necessary, depending on the geographical area and size of population. This will certainly help in protecting the interests of different sections of society, which are marginalised.

Rotation of Seats

One-third of all seats in the Lok Sabha and the Vidhan Sabhas should be reserved for women; reservation shall also be applicable for seats reserved for and STs. As the percentage of reservation is large, permanent reservation of certain seats is neither feasible nor politically permissible, and therefore the Bill provides for rotation of reservation in every general election for a period of five years. Such rotation shall be determined by the draw of lots, in such a manner that every seat shall be reserved only once in a block of three General Elections. Every third constituency would be reserved for women, chosen by lottery a rotated after a parliamentary period of five years, Several features of this were found objectionable on grounds supporting the cause of women as well as their effect on the overall political system.

This rotation will automatically result in two-thirds of incumbent memebers being forcibly unseated in every general election. The remaining one-third will be left in limbo until the last minute, not knowing if their constituency will form part of the one-third randomly reserved seats. In addition, it would introduce new instability in the political system after de-reservation. When the lottery switches the reserved constituency, a new representative would be chosen; it would only be rarely that the elected women could hold her seat in an open contest. The link between representatives and their constituencies would become further tenuous.

There is also resentment about reserved seats for SCs and STs being frozen in the same constituencies over a period of time. Inevitably, there will vociferous and justified demands for rotation of seats reserved for SCs and some cases STs, once women’s seats are rotated. The categorical division population for mutation of seats is shown in Table 7. The population of SCs and STs is now estimated to be around 15 percent and 7.5 percent respectively, on an all India basis. In certain states, the SC and ST population exceeds 35 perce nt. In the event of rotation of all reserved seats with one-third seats reserved women, every single seat will be rotated in every general election.

Table 7: Rotation Seats

Out of the 77.5 percent, one-third seats are available for women from general category, and this is only 26 percent. The remaining 51.5 percent is open for men. Women could also contest elections from the open category of 51.5% . There is a tendency that such compulsory rotation might violate the very basic principles of democratic representation and leadership development. In most cases, the male politicians will be tempted to spend much of their political capital helping their own female relatives corner these reserved seats. Such proxies would be expected to keep the seat ‘safe’ for the men until the next election, when they would again try to reclaim their seats. This in effect will make women’s presence in legislatures ornamental and will not in any way help more effective participation in politics.

Besides, an elected M.P (Member of Parliament) or M.L.A (Member of Legislative Assembly) represents a particular geographical area. He or she is accountable to the people in his or her constituency. Assuming that women constitute 50% of almost every Parliamentary or State Assemblies, it will be difficult, if not impossible to allocate constituencies. If a constituency is reserved exclusively for women, this may perhaps be a matter of pure chance.

Double-member Constituencies

In the year 2003, a Bill was introduced by the BJP government which incorporated another element to the provision to create double-member constituencies in the Lok Sabha to give increased representation to women. The implication of increasing the number of Lok Sabha seats by a whopping 181 members out of 544 seats is that the size of the Lok Sabha will increase by 725 mbers. Subsequently, the resolution adopted at the National Executive Committee had urged the NDA government to take the initiative in this matter introduce a Constitutional Amendment Bill; it was suggested that the State Legislative Assemblies can follow suit and enhance the number of seats by one-third, and make the new constituencies dual-member ones.

Accommodating additional members in the Parliament could be a way of the impasse over women’s reservation. But the disadvantage is that, apart the enormous strain it poses on the exchequer, geographically, the bigger states will gain over smaller states in absolute terms. As a consequence, the former will exercise greater clout than the latter due to lower population size in smaller states.

The double-constituency process has been thought of merely to side- track once again the basic issue of greater representation for women in the highest bodies of the country. Women already have representation in local bodies, barring a few exceptions, the experience has been far from satisfactory. In most cases, the ‘double-member’ concept is already in operation as the husband or the father act brazenly on behalf of women, rendering the whole exercise into a farce. But any new system needs time to correct itself and let us accept the fact that women should be given due representation in legislatures, however flawed it might turn out to be in the beginning.

The double membership in the constituencies is a deviation to accommodate more men through the easy and automatic route of reservation, especially with no specific demand. This concept is basically designed to perpetuate male domination. This proposal would decrease the numher of women in the arena and the objective of one-third of seats for women will not be realised. The women elected as members in such instances, will always be view appendages and not worth mentioning as leaders for the real cause. One point to be remembered is that there will be a lack of common views a male and female members for nurturing the constituency and this may lead to difference of opinion among themselves.

Since there has been debate on the delimitation exercise, the government had decided to bring a Constitution Amendment Bill to provide for readjustment of Parliamentary and Assembly Constituencies by limiting the of ministries by 10 percent of the House to prohibit by law the current practice of having jumbo-size ministries, owing to political pulls and pressures. The constitutional change to freeze the membership of Lok Sabha till the year, to reduce the strain of the exchequer in National Economy is a matter of concern. At this point of time, creating double member constituencies is a ludicrous proposal. Through there is no agreement among the political parties fot proposal, some parties are favourable to the amendment in the hope of keeping the seats for men intact.

Besides, the controversies and implications of the issues have inextricably linked with the agendas of the various political groups. It has exposed the fact that though the Bill cannot be opposed, the remnants of feudal mindset within parties as well as their apprehensions about the danger of reforms having strategic implications — which may drastically affect policies, especially those relating to women, in a situation where women have hardly been accorded equal status and position within these parties — remain quite real.

Analysing the positive and negative aspects of the provisions of the Bill despite all the hidden motives, it is one of the most important and legiti reforms in favour of women. It is for the first time that the challenge has been thrown open before the political parties, as well as the feminists within women’s movement, to mobilise a large social force in a positive and independent direction. Whatever bearing the feudal-patriarchal structure may have in the actual process of implementation and on the independent assertion of women, say after one decade of its implementation, there will certainly emerge a positive trend favouring women’s participation in the process of policy-making.

The prospects of the Women’s Reservation Bill are:

• Women entering into politics with a vision for restoring the unhealthy and dysfunctional political system, to make politics truly representative and overhaul institutions of governance.

• Women’s equal and active participation in political life plays a pivotal role in the overall developmental process of the advancement of women in particular and society in general.

• Women’s wider participation in formal electoral competition brings core issues of political dynamics to the fore. Their involvement in women’s perspectives at all levels is not truly a demand for simple justice or democracy but can also be seen as a necessary condition for their own interests.

• Besides, feminising politics encompasses not only formal political structures and meeting the agenda of women’s issues by examining the framework and values that inform traditional politics, but it also enriches and corrects current political practice and in a nutshell, transforms politics for better results.

Challenges

The contemporary women’s involvement has sought to challenge the statement that the democratic revolution towards right to equality is uniform in nature; instead a combination of surmountable pressures resides in socio-cultural institutional barriers.

• Not sufficient safeguards for women’s political representation

• The process of development and democracy are not sufficient safeguards for women’s political representation but there is acute need to develop a clear perspective on women’s multiple ways of oppression and exploitation from human rights perspectives in general and women’s rights in particular and also a paradigm shift from prevailing constructions of conservative approaches.

• Gender bias of mainstream thinking

• Patriarchal ideology and the consequent male domination of the decision making process has resulted in control over the allocation of scarce goods and resources. Poor growth is the outcome of an inefficient distribution system of human resource. A good which involves both men and women in the decision making process for, initiating action is necessary for development on priori gender responsive legislation and gender responsive budgeting that the government had initiated would go a long way towards making governments and governance more gender sensitive. Women’s political leadership is to challenge the tradition of ascribing g to certain traits, laying a foundation for greater gains in gender equality.

• Domestic violence against women — The physical and psychological violence that women experience from within the family will weaken their self-confidence and hamper their active participation in life.

• Social inequalities — correcting illiteracy, a step towards emancipation and social justice

• Economic inequality — frustrations of modern life with rising tide of consumerism and greed find their outlet most easily in violence against those who are most vulnerable

Notwithstanding the fact that several women leaders have combated negative stereotypes against women, the challenge to prove their worthiness in political battle should be the main agenda. For women attaining full and equal participation in the decision-making processes at all levels of governance, an integrated approach to provide strategic direction involving stakeholders from government, civil society and community is more demanding. It is crucial to promote women’s issues which hitherto never received attention rather than the leadership of women, in order to combat political complexities.

• While gender ideology is certainly influential in keeping the level of women’s representation low, women’s relative lack of representation need to be redressed.

• Mobilise widely under-represented women from the marginalised to political governance.

• Engendering governance makes women identify issues to be included in the policy agenda, deliberate on various policy options, champion and vote for gender-responsive policy solutions, advocate gender responsive budgeting, monitor implementation and evaluate policy outcomes.

• Political institutions to gauge the confidence of women’s responsivess, accountability and ability to participate in the political process .

Apparently, at the urban level, socio-economic reforms are faring better changing the status of women in terms of health and employment opportunities. The commitment of the UPA government is in pursuance of legislation that will provide flexibility in working hours to women and encourage women’s employment in the industrial and service sector. The commendable achievement the present government is that it has enacted ‘The Right to Information Act,’ ‘Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act 2005,’ and the ‘ Employment Guarantee Act 2006’, thus empowering the citizens.

No doubt, remedial measures create a healthy environment which develops strength and confidence among women folk. Substantial care has to be taken by the government to examine all the existing social legislations and laws concerning women in the light of development indicators. Assuming that laws will be enforced by themselves without special efforts and timely intervention by the state or central governments, the status of women would become vulnerable rather than make remarkable progress.

The following are my Recommendations in this issue:

Empower local government fully for,

• Utilisation of their own resources by the elected represcntatives for

the well-being and development of the community. The local bodies are the best evaluators to deal with local problems than the member at the district or state level due to uneven resource management.

• Bridging the combined forces of urban-rural digital divide and making the constituency a knowledge-based centre for administering the local issues more efficiently.

• Given the revolutionary attitude among women in combating complexities of diverse roles, they would certainly take a different approach in governance and offer something unique to the political process for their prospective and transformative politics. Further, a new regime of empowered women in self-governance, though not completely successful, is an unprecedented event, and is surely a manifestation of exemplary qualities and may perhaps be considered as a valuable team.

For sustained economic growth, alleviating poverty through government initiatives of direct and indirect methods among women is necessary. The political favours the direct method despite the fact that it is not so effective in the long run. The micro economic policies constitute the indirect method of alleviating poverty and are more complex because they effectively reduce poverty after years of sustained pressure. Here, we can take note of the national international organisations who are working in meeting the objectives of alleviating poverty. Due to the political ambiguities of parties and the changing economic scenario of the government in modem democracy, the elected member may not be able to successfully complete the tenure because of uncertainty of power and policy. As a result, the framework of policies and programmes for particular purposes would cause delay or create irregularities.

To emphasize, the positive experience of reservation has lent enormous advantages to the demand for moving women to political administration, women who may be groomed to become prospective candidates to the State Legislate and the Parliament. Truly speaking, involvement of women in the political domain does provide role-models for women and when women are empowered, informed and supported, they can create a meaningful impact. Hence, it is necessary to institute a system of reservation for women. Empowered and politically sensitive female bureaucracy will increase the critical mass of women exercising power as electorate, implementers and policy-makers thus ensuring that women’s political voices are no longer ignored. Proposals for reservation for women must therefore be a part of general reforms in electoral politics.

As mentioned in the case of enforcement of laws with respect to socio-economic empowerment, I think the Election Commissions from the state the center should act as gatekeepers during elections. In the event of a recognised political party not complying with the mandatory provisions, for the lack every woman candidate while nominating candidates for elective office, male candidates of the party in the State or cluster of 3 Lok Sabha constituencies, as decided by the party, shall be deemed to be independent candidates for purposes including allotment of symbols.

Notwithstanding similar manifestos by the various political alliances under their common minimum programme to reserve one-third of seats for women Parliament and State Legislatures, women’s representation remains low. Hence, reservation of seats for women is to be made mandatory in the Constitution, that all the recognised political parties shall nominate women during election in one-third of the constituencies in which the party is contesting.

NOTES AND REFERENCES:

^{1 “}Enhancing Women’s Representation in Legislatures: An Alternative to the Government Bill for Women’s Reservation Forum for Democratic Reforms — Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan, Dhirubhai Seth, Yogendra Yadav and Madhu Kishwar.” Manushi 116 (Jan-Feb. 2000)

² Kishwar, Madhu. “Women’s Marginal Role in Politics.” Off the Beaten Track:- Rethinking Gender Justice for Indian Women. 1999.

³ Karkal, Malini.: Indian Women and Globalisation (Unpublished Article) November 27, 1996. Location: SNDT Churchgate

⁴ The fact that this Department is responsible for establishing machineries and creating the space and credibility for gender equity and equality concerns in policy dialogue, make it critical for UNDP. UNIFEM. Subsequent to Beijing +5, the National Alliance of Women (NAWO) Secretariat, had organised National Conference at Delhi to implement the platform of action held at Beijing.

⁵ Manpower profile India Year Book 2004. New Delhi: Institute of Applied Manpower Research, 2004.

^{6 “}The Gender Gap Persists Globally- Editorial”, The Hindu June 11, 2005.

⁷ IPU, 1994

⁸ Sinha, Kanchan. “Citizenship degraded: Indian Women in a Modern Stae and a Pre-modern Society.” Gender and Development 11.3 (November 2003): 19-26.

⁹ Ibid No. (8)

¹⁰ socialwatch.org/en/informesNacionales/446.html (Accumulated effects of inequality Himamshu Jha, 2005

¹¹ UNDP 1993 Human Development Report

¹² Rangarajan, Mahesh. “Polity in Transition.” Economic and Political Weekly August 6, 2005: 3598-3606.

¹³ Beijing +10 Review: A Feminist Strategy for 2004-05: A Working Paper on How to Move Forward.” March, 2004.

¹⁴ Nambisan. Sobha (2005). Effective Enforcement of Social Legislation Pertaining to Women,” Occasional Paper series No.1, April 2005, The Institute Bangalore.

¹⁵ Kaza, Avinash. “Political Determinants of Indian Social Development.” Dept. of Economics, Stanford University, May 2003.

¹⁶ Himanshu and Yogesh Kumar. “The Accumulated Effects of Inequality.” Source: Social Watch India, 2005 report.

¹⁷ Voter turnout is defined as the percentage of the actual number of voters divided by the number of eligible voters.

¹⁸ Kaza, Avinash. “Political Determinants of Indian Social Development.” Dept. of Economics, Stanford University, May 2003.

¹⁹ Ibid 18

²⁰ http://pd.epim.org/2003/0511 /05112003_ edit.htm

²¹ http://www.pucl.org/Topics/Gender/2003/reservation-Bill.htm

²² Kaza, Avinash. “Political Determinants of Indian Social Development.” Dept. of Economics, Stanford University, May 2003.

²³ “On party’s perspective on women’s issues and tasks.” (Adopted by the Central Committee at its December 14-16, 2005 Meeting). CPI(M) Meeting, December 2005

²⁴ (United Nations, 1996:109).

²⁵ Sinha, Kanchan. “Citizenship degraded: Indian Women in a Modern State and a Pre-modern Society.’ Gender and Development 11.3 (November 2003): 19-26.

²⁶ Women’s Empowerment in Village Politics

²⁷ Rule, Wilma. “Women’s underespresentation and Electcral Systems,” Political Science and Politics 1987. Kenworthy. Lane and Melissa Malami. “Gender lnequality in Political Representation: A Worldwide Comparative Analysis.” Social Forces 78( 1):235-268.

²⁸ United Nations Office at Vienna, Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs. 1992. Women in politics and Decision -Making in the Late Twentieth Century: A United Nations Study. Boston: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.

²⁹ Rule 1987, 479

³⁰ One notable study to contradict Rule was that of Matland (1998).

³¹ United Nations Office at Vienna, Centre for Social Development and Humanitarian Affairs. 1992. Women in politics and Decision -Making in the Late Twentieth Century: A United Nations Study. Boston: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers.

³² Panchayati Raj Institutions — The Panchayat system has existed formally in most of the major states of India since thc early 1950s. Howeever, in most states, the system was not an effective body of governance until the early 1990s. Effective meaningful functioning of thcse bodies would depend on active involvement, contribution and participation of its citizens both male and female. Ghandiji’s dream of every village being a republic and Panchayats having powers has been translated into reality with the introduction of the system to enlist peopl participation in rural reconstruction.

³³ The main features of the 73rd Amendment are – (i) a three-tier system of Panchay Raj for all States having a population of over twenty lakhs; (ii) Panchayat election to be held regularly every five years; (iii) reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and for women (not less than one-third of seats), (iv) constitution of State Finance Commissions; (v) constitution of District Planning Committees to prepare development plans for the district as a whole; (vi) establishment of State Election Commissions; and (vii) establishment of Gram Sabhas.

³⁴ The Prime Minister’s Office has recently decided to review the performance of Ministries on gender mainstreaming – My Department plans to set up a National Resource Centre for Women. This would be the nodal body to mainstream gender issues in policies and programmes for women through training, policy support, information dissemination, research and documentation.

There has been an evolution in the waay our Plans have looked at issues to do with women: in the first plans, until the 50s, women were mainly looked at as recipients of welfare; in the 60s, women’s education started to receive priority, along with measures to improve maternal and child health and nutrition services; there was a marked shift in the 70s from welfare to development, recognising women as participants in the process of development; in the 80s, we adopted a multi disciplinary approach, with a special thrust on three core sectors — health, education and employment; in the early 90s, the emphasis was on training and skill development programmes to make women economically independent and self reliant; and in the current plan, which runs front 1997 to 2002, the empowerment of women is one of its nine primary objectives.

³⁵ Economic and Political Weekly, October 29, 2005.

Contributor:

GAYATHRI N. LOKHANDE. Holds a Master’s degree in Political Science from Bangalore University. She is presently working in the School of Social Sciences, National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS), Bangalore. Since the time she joined NIAS in 1996, she has been engaged in providing assistance to several research projects including Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).