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POLITICAL DIARY
Women’s Reservation Bill
NO MORE BELAN Vs PAGRI, PLEASE
By Poonam I Kaushish
New Delhi, May 13, 2008
Decency took a day off in Parliament last
week. When a section of the male MPs’ stripped the Rajya Sabha
of all etiquette and propriety. And bared their fangs against
the Women’s Reservation Bill providing for 33 per cent
reservation in Parliament and the State legislatures by
lunging for Law Minister Bharadwaj, snatching his paper and
tearing it up. Leaving it to the modern day Eves to retaliate
and save him. Never mind if in this strange belan versus pagri
fight it debased Parliament. Leaving one flabbergasted and
gasping!
What is it about this Bill that inflames the right Honourables
to lose their head and even take recourse to violence? And,
why has it taken nine long years to just re-introduce the Bill
a third time over? Why is this final hurdle so hard to cross?
Is it just a pretense, a concession to humour a pocketful of
educated women with the Bill, which is meaningless to the
large majority?
Clearly, the ding-dong battle said it all. The women’s
reservation bill is once again headed for cold storage in the
standing committee on personnel, public grievances, law and
justice. Blame it on our male-centric mindset. Any leeway
given to women is termed as an affront to manhood. Followers
of God Adonis, they hate the idea of reducing themselves to a
situation wherein behind every successful woman stands a man.
Right from Adam and Eve, to the Sati Pratha, the time when
Raja Ram Mohan Roy initiated the process of unshackling women
from male bondage, there has been stringent resistance at
every level.
Even now the introduction is half-hearted, but it is
politically correct to do so. After all, in the cut-throat
business of politics of appeasement, 50 per cent of the
electorate is crucial. The torch bearers of the anti-women
brigade is led by our “made in India” trio of Mulayam, Laloo
and Mayawati who revel in their crudest best to oppose all
talk of reservation till such time as their vote banks --- the
OBCs and the minorities --- are given a quota within this
quota. No matter, that their track record of women
representation within the existing SC/ST quotas is zilch. And
never mind that they are among the worst in gender indicators
- maternal mortality, women's literacy, etc in Bihar and UP.
Both the Congress and the BJP are grinding a different axe.
Notwithstanding the right noises, they are simply doffing
their hat to the cause of women’s empowerment than in actually
seeing the law through. Besides, there are several spoilsports
to put a spoke in the wheel. In fact, they are confident that
the "OBC block" would stall the Bill. Thus, they support the
legislation in public, certain that it would never become law.
Those openly opposing reservations argue that it would only
bring the urban elite women to power. Hogwash. Remember, no
quota has ever seen a homogenous representation. But even if
the argument were justified, are we to believe that Indian
women would like to be represented by the Mulayam’s and
Laloo’s than by their urban sisters? Jayalalithaa's AIADMK is
far more women-friendly than any Bihari or UP Government.
Look at the irony. India’s most powerful politician today is a
women, many women have adorned the Chief Ministers kursi and
thousands others head village Panchayats. Yet all attempts to
increase the fairer sex’s presence in Parliament and State
legislatures have miserably failed. Women account for less
than 10 per cent of both Houses of Parliament.
In fact, women participation in electoral politics has
remained more or less stagnant in successive Lok Sabhas. It
ranges between 19 and 47 MPs: The twelfth Lok Sabha had 43
woman MPs (7.6 per cent), eleventh 40 (7.3 per cent), the
ninth 28 (5 per cent), eighth eight per cent and the sixth had
the lowest number of 19 women members, representing barely 3.4
per cent of the House. Also, our record for sending women to
Parliament is among the worst in the world. In a list of 135
countries, India stands at a grand 105th position.
What is the reason for such poor women representation? Is it
attitudinal inclination, the fair sex’s abhorrence for the
rough and tumble of politics, lack of opportunities or purely
male dominance? All this and more. If the 60s ushered in an
era of free sex, burning the bra typified the emancipated 70s,
the 80s measured equality with right to abortion and the 90s
replaced rights and equality with empowerment.
In fact, the status of women has seen an evolutionary change
over the centuries. Every generation and decade has tried to
move one step closer towards eradication of gender
discrimination. But as a woman activist asserted, “Women are
slaves to men. To cook, feed, mother and warm their beds”. And
this persistence of gender inequality manifests from the low
female-male ration of 0.93, one of the lowest in the world.
The preference for boys in fertility decision and the neglect
and death of a girl child, gender gaps in literacy,
restrictive property rights etc. lead the deficit of women in
a male-dominated society.
Arguably, it is precisely the gender distinction that results
in lack of women participation in politics, governance and
economic activity. The Bill on reservation in legislatures
will only help bring women into the political mainstream and
give them tangible political and economic power in the context
of the emerging paradigm, assert the feminists.
It is indisputable that there is a paucity of strong women in
politics with Party bosses often being reluctant to trust them
with handling the rowdy business of winning elections. There
is also a certain neglect of women issues in most elected
bodies. But the moot point is: Will this Bill correct the
centuries-old imbalances and stigma against women? Will
increased participation of women in the political process lead
to less female infanticide, fewer dowry deaths, bride burning
and trampling of female aspirations.
Experience shows that no amount of legislation has ended
gender discrimination. Stringent laws against sex
discrimination have not led to any decrease in crimes against
a woman. Times out of number, the culprits go scot-free or, at
best, get set off with light punishment. Empowerment of women
has to come through the natural evolution of society.
Instruments like education and family planning should be used
to end feminine poverty along with legislation from the top.
Not just physical and outward application, but mental
acceptance that both males and females are on an equal
footing.
On the whole, it is a good idea to have more women than less.
But the danger is that gender politics at times leads to a
ferocious brand of political Puritanism. One hopes this Bill
will not end up as an exercise in competitive, reckless
populism at its worst. Our leaders need to recognize that
inequalities do exist and should be rectified. Simply to shrug
one’s shoulder and assert, “reservation, not today sweetie,”
is a cop out! ---- INFA
(Copyright India News & Feature Alliance)
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