Come October, women in national capital can travel by public transport buses for free. This is thanks to the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and its chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. He had floated the idea a while ago, and has now made the formal announcement. This is for the first time in the world that an entire lot based on their gender has been accorded such a privilege. To this extent, Kejriwal and his party stands every chance of getting into the Guinness Book of Records.
At the same time, legal challenges to the decision will only have to be anticipated on grounds of gender discrimination. If this happens then Kejriwal can hope to smile his way through a vote bank, of women, which he went out of his way to woo.
Gender equality is a sacred concept which the civilized world is trying to ensure after generations and generations of suffering by women at the hands of men who sought to dominate them. Education empowered women in the West first, and in India to a limited extent in recent decades. Today women are excelling in education and other fields and they are conquering as yet unexplored fields of jobs and public service as never before. A 33 per cent reservation for women in elected posts is a concept that has been implemented in some states but not at the national level. This is the logical minimum they could get as they comprise 50 per cent of the population.
Doing justice to a disadvantaged section is one thing but turning them into vote banks or having other ulterior motives is another thing. If entire India followed the example being set by the leader of a small province like Delhi, the financial implications would be such that it could ultimately play havoc with the public transport system. Free travel would also mean a tendency to undertake more and even needless travel, meaning added rush and jam-packing of buses.
Arvind Kejriwal had raised much hope when he as a Magsaysay award winning social activist joined the Anna Hazare-led anti-corruption movement in 2011. He left it soon to form his own political party and eventually won power. The Lok Sabha polls this time saw his party winning just one seat. Hence, the new tricks in the trade to win the coming assembly elections and continue in power by hook or by crook.