Significantly, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi says the first thing he would do in the event of becoming Prime Minister is to implement the much awaited reservation for women. Rahul has not elaborated on it, though it is obvious that he meant reservation for women, among other places, in legislative bodies like assemblies and Parliament. This demand has been in the air for quite some time and political parties had in the past made a commitment to ensure a 33 per cent reservation for women in electoral bodies. Based on the ground that women constitute about half the population, granting them a one-third space in legislative bodies is the minimum they should expect. There however is resistance to such a move from some regional parties based on how the social scenario will pan out in such an eventuality and how the backward and depressed sections of the population would be able to protect or promote their interests in this context.
Fact is that in the past half a century, since Indira Gandhi took over the reins of India’s leadership, women have progressively entered almost every sector of public life, including governmental jobs and the management of private sector entities. The banking sector, for instance, has placed them in top positions and the US multinational firm Pepsi Co has placed at its head an Indian woman executive to lead a team of 1,70,000 staff. The US has as its vice president today a woman of Indian origin. In the neighbourhood, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh boasted of women at the head of its governance system. They have demonstrated strong leadership qualities. Germany and the United Kingdom saw women governing the nation in most-admirable ways, as in the case of Margaret Thatcher, the Iron Lady, and Angela Merkel. Yet, the fact remains that social prejudices against women at the helm of affairs is evident at lower levels.
A decisive step in empowering women was taken in India when reservation was ensured for them in Panchayat Raj institutions or local bodies. Many women are at the head of these institutions and social acceptance about women in leadership levels has increased as a result. The logical next step forward is to implement the reservation system for women in assemblies and parliaments. It was Victor Hugo who said, “Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come.” Rahul Gandhi has only stated only the obvious. Women have come of age a long time ago but have been enslaved by patriarchy. Getting out of this social organisation requires a political push. The BJP’s “beti bachao beti padhao” remains only a slogan.
