Challenges remaining after passing the Women’s Reservation Bill
Context:
- After passing, the problem is to make sure that the equality promised is realised.
- Parliament passed the Women’s Reservation Bill, or Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, in September, making history. It is a clear call to action for women to understand their agency, take on equal obligations as citizens, and take control of their own lives. It is an important that all political parties recognise the significance of the role that women play in an inclusive society.
- It is a noteworthy accomplishment of the nation’s women’s movement. It took 27 years for the Bill to be approved by Parliament.
The Trip:
- The fight for women’s equal participation in the development of the country began before it gained independence.
- Feminist discourses have featured nuanced, sometimes even contradictory, arguments. These include Sushma Swaraj’s 2014 request, Sarojini Naidu’s vehement opposition to women’s quotas during the Constituent Assembly debates, and other lawmakers pleading with them to back this historic law.
- Relationship between women’s political equality and affirmative action laws like the Women’s Reservation Bill.
- First, we can go from politics of speech to politics of presence by enacting a mandatory quota in accordance with proportional representation. India is one of the few nations that attained independence and gave women full and equal citizenship rights.
- The Constitution’s core principle of political equality makes it morally required of the state for women to participate in politics.
- But men and masculinist politics have controlled the political arena for the most part, marginalising and treating women as benefactors. In assistance programmes, women are frequently viewed as a “category.”
- Proponents such as Anne Phillips have espoused the notion of a “politics of presence.” They contend that women can serve as role models for future generations by contributing special talents and political philosophies derived from their experiences.
- The second point of contention is that Indian women have continuously resisted marginalisation and invisibility. Women from various areas and walks of life made important contributions to the independence struggle. Their crucial participation in Mahatma Gandhi’s non-cooperation, civil disobedience, Khadi, and Swadeshi movements is an essential part of the historical story.
The report “Towards Equality”:
- The “Towards Equality” report of 1974 shed light on gender-based disparities in a number of areas, opening the door for the rise of movements addressing issues including discrimination against girls and women, violence against women, and barriers to education and employment. These movements frequently served as models for innovative laws.
Current initiatives to empower women:
- The government and women’s groups have worked together to produce recent policies like the Beti Bachao Beti Padhao initiatives and the granting of property rights to women in tribal regions. Women were given more authority at the panchayati raj level by the 73rd and 74th amendments, which dispelled previous concerns about their suitability for local government.
- Women lawmakers have often changed discussions and produced progressive laws with their eloquent and learned statements.
Empowered Women: Today’s Actualities:
- Women have achieved great progress in the field of education in the modern era, as seen by the rise in female enrollment in universities. They are becoming more noticeable in the arts, literature, space research, aviation, bureaucracy, and medical. They have demonstrated skill in negotiating multiple tiers of power structures and getting over both horizontal and vertical inequality. In every aspect, it is clear that they want to contribute to the success of the nation.
Limitations on quota implementation procedures:
- Although the Act reflects the public’s mandate for gender equality in politics, there are procedural restrictions for the actual implementation of the quota for women. These include delimitation based on the census data collected after 2026. Next, let’s make the most of this historic occasion. In order to prepare women for the political sphere, higher education in fields like law, political science, and public policy should be encouraged. Mentorship is an option for seasoned female politicians.
Way Forward:
- Finally, we support the theory of reflective autonomy, which combines a dedication to a common set of values with an awareness of one’s own identity. Three “Es” form the basis of this concept: empathy, emancipation, and engagement.
