The Women's Reservation Bill, which allocates 33 per cent of seats
for women in the Lok Sabha and the legislative assemblies, shifts
the onus for female empowerment away from the political parties
and onto Parliament.
The question is: Does packing Parliament and the legislatures
with more women have any political significance? Or is it a mere gender exercise?
Will it qualitatively alter the prospects for women in the Indian
political and social milieu or merely end up a token gesture
to satisfy a populist pledge made by the political establishment?
The plea for a separate quota for women belonging to the Other
Backward Castes is founded on the argument that the benefits
of reservation will be cornered by urban upper caste women who
do not speak for their sisters at the lower end of the social
scale. In effect, the articulate few will hijack the rights of
the inarticulate majority.
The trouble with Sharad Yadav's argument is it betrays gender
bias. In the past, there has been no compulsion to raise the demand
for separate reservation for OBC males. This selective invocation
of caste arouses suspicion of an attempt to scuttle the Women's
Reservation Bill. Or could it be that the OBC lobby is seeking
to extend its hegemony through the demand for a separate quota
for its women?
This brings us to the crux issue of whether women in Parliament
actually represent the interests of women or the interests of the
male dominated political establishment. In the constituencies,
gender is of little consequence. A candidate wins or loses on
the popularity of the party he or she represents. This is an imputable
truth of the election process.
It is therefore incumbent on the political parties to take the
initiative for female empowerment by fielding more women candidates
and ensuring that women's issues have pride of place on their
agendas. Shifting the onus to Parliament is tantamount to side-stepping the primary responsibility that rests with the political
parties themselves.
OBC dominated constituencies will vote in favour of OBC candidates,
male or female. Thus, reservation for women in Parliament
is purely academic. But it does give women the option to speak
up for their interests on a priority basis.
But the pressing need for women is to break out of their political
bondage to men. Whether the women's Bill is a step in this direction
is hard to say. Women are up against entrenched male paranoia.
A male preserve now faces the threat of female intrusion.
Senior politicians pay lip service to the cause of female empowerment,
but at the end of the day they will not be willing to give up
their hold on the political process to accommodate women. Women are faced
with the challenge of making inroads into a political system that
is governed by male vested interests.
Women must ponder the question whether they want reservation as
a concession from a male dominated political establishment and
what that would offer them in terms of real empowerment. Can reservation
be a serious commitment for political parties characterised by
gender inequality?
The platitudinous approach to female empowerment is apt to gloss
over the conflict of interest that will inevitably arise. How
will the political establishment react when women, newly empowered,
begin to challenge the inheritance laws and certain patriarchal
practices? Will the Muslim League leadership, which had demanded
a separate quota for their women, allow its female MPs to question
the provisions of the Shariat?
In the villages of Haryana and elsewhere, male relatives execute
the duties of women elected to panchayat-level committees and
Zilla Parishads.
A disguised version of this village scenario prevails in political
parties at the national level. Women MPs have an essentially decorative
role and must operate within male-imposed restrictions. Even the
'fire brand' female politicians making waves in Parliament and
outside have done little for the cause of female empowerment within
their parties.
But even as a token measure, the Women's Reservation Bill has
its utility. The symbolic elevation in women's political status is a first step towards real enhancement in the future.
The symbol can metamorphose into fact.
Tell us what you think of this column
