The 33 Debate

From fearing the participation of parkati auratein (literally meaning ‘wingless women’; referring to the urban woman), to threatening to consume poison if the Bill be passed, the Lok Sabha has witnessed abysmal reactions to the Women’s Reservation Bill. Ironically, despite the rampant chauvinism displayed by Members of Parliament, the President and de jure head of the largest democracy in the world is a woman, as is the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Women across India hold important positions in the political hierarchy at the national, state and panchayat level..1992: Rajeev Gandhi’s efforts for the empowerment of women at the grass root level culminates in the enactment of the Panchayati Raj Act, 1992 reserving 33 percent of the seats for women in Panchayat institutions..1996: Prime Minister, H.D. Deve Gowda expresses his desire to extend the 33 percent reservation for women to each level of legislative decision-making..June 2009: The Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar’s attempt at prioritising the Bill at the 15th Lok Sabha is, yet again, met with opposition..October 2009: The Law Minister, Veerappa Moily, promises to table the Bill in the Winter Session of Parliament..From fearing the participation of parkati auratein (literally meaning ‘wingless women’; referring to the urban woman), to threatening to consume poison if the Bill be passed, the Lok Sabha has witnessed abysmal reactions to the Women’s Reservation Bill. There are many reasons why the Bill faces strong opposition from current legislators. Fear of losing their seats and a patriarchal approach to the role of women in public decision-making process are the main impediments to parliamentarians’ acceptance of the Bill. Ironically, despite the rampant chauvinism displayed by Members of Parliament, the President and de jure head of the largest democracy in the world is a woman, as is the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Women across India hold important positions in the political hierarchy at the national, state and panchayat level..Another concern was the oppression of the backward classes if the Bill be passed. Quota within quota is provided for by the Constitution at the panchayat level. The Constitution provides for the reservation of seats in the panchayat for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in proportion to their population. Of this, one-third of the seats are to be reserved for women belonging to minority communities. However, this Bill seeks to strengthen woman power. Bringing in the necessity of class bifurcation as an opposition to the Bill will not serve the purpose of achieving its essence..Ms. Kalpana Kannabiran, of the ASMITA Resource Centre for Women points out, “When the question of the representation of people was discussed for an independent India, was there a concern that the right to political participation will open the road to nepotism, caste, etc.? The clustering of these indices is interesting. If you remove caste, class, religion and gender, what is left in Indian society? These are the parameters of social organisation and all people in the country are located within a combination of these parameters, so that both all those who contest and all those who vote do so from specific locations.”.There are many questions raised about the ability of the Bill to effect social and political change, as well as its legitimacy as a vehicle for female empowerment. Feminist commentators protest the implication that women are a deprived or marginalised section of society, requiring legislation for their upliftment..In response, Ms. Kannabiran states, “Asking for the Women’s Reservation Bill is a statement based on the fact that women, in sixty years, have been virtually unrepresented in politics. There is an exclusion at work which draws its logic from a patriarchal compact that resists their entry into governance through active obstruction and violent misogyny. The right to equal participation is an inalienable part of the right to equal citizenship. Whether all women are poor, destitute; whether all women who are elected/or in formal politics will work in the interests of women, will do woman-speak, is another question altogether. The reservation bill is about women having the right to a political voice which has been denied for sixty years.”.Whilst the Women’s Reservation Bill may not be the final answer to discrimination against women in the political sphere, it is certainly a step towards achieving that goal. Relying on the assurance given by the Law Minister, can we now say that the Bill is riding the final crest of a wave that began almost two decades ago?.Pavithra Anand has an LLM from the London School of Economics. She is currently working as a lawyer with Viswanathan & Co., Bangalore.