The Hindu : Women keep political parties guessing

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Mar 16, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Women keep political parties guessing

By M.L. Melly Maitreyi

HYDERABAD, MARCH 15. They comprise the decisive chunk of votes that can turn the tide. Constituting close to 50 per cent of the vote bank, women voters are also those who cast their ballots religiously, election after election.

History shows that when a campaign was run on issues concerning women, political parties were amply rewarded. Be it the promise of late N.T.Rama Rao's prohibition and property right to women or the mantra of women empowerment in the last elections, women have responded favourably.

But this time round, women seem to be keeping all parties guessing even as the TDP, the Congress and others have no new slogan to catch the imagination of women voters.

The parties continue to rely on the DWCRA (Development of Women and Children in Rural Areas) scheme and the women's Bill for representation in legislative bodies. But these were the issues that had been there for some time and the women's bill had been debated and discussed with no concrete results.

So the same-old dilemma surfaces again -- do women's issues come to the fore during elections only to be ignored later?

How do political parties reconcile their tall talk about empowerment with ground realities?

Says the Mahila Congress president, J. Geeta Reddy: Congress has always recognised contribution of women right from days of the freedom struggle and women got the right to vote soon after the country became a republic.

Many Congress-ruled States had women Chief Ministers -- from Nandini Satpathy to Sheila Dixit. Not to speak of the only woman Prime Minister, late Indira Gandhi, and the present Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

Critical of the nine-year-TDP rule, she says the state ranked low in literacy, health and hygiene and led in violence and atrocities against women.

Women are bitter about rising prices, denial of equal wages and lack of livelihood, leading to migration. The TDP was a letdown when it failed to use its clout in the NDA for passage of the women's bill.

The Congress says it is going to women voters with commitment on women's bill and to plug the loopholes in the DWCRA scheme implementation, release of revolving funds to all groups without bias, low interest on loans, better health and hygiene and proposal to bring back prohibition in phases. Ms. Reddy agrees women are not giving their mind away though they are better aware of issues.

The TDP Co-ordinator, Atluri Rama Devi, says women are more socially aware, thanks to the TDP's vigorous pursuit of the DWCRA scheme and their enrolment in various committees.

Women broke tradition and came out to interact with the world outside home and better equipped to look after their families. Regarding atrocities on women, she argues women too should assert their rights and change mindset, to realise true empowerment.

The IT boom facilitated by the TDP brought more jobs to women in urban areas. About the numbers game in politics, she says for every party it is only winning chances and not gender that matter in the issue of ticket. On this basis, the TDP fielded several women candidates in the last elections, she reminds. The TDP is going to women voters with the promise of more loans to women and social empowerment.

Sandhya, of Progressive Organisation for Women, says women are tired of being exploited as a vote bank with sky-high promises during elections only to be dumped later.

There is a distinct change in the mood of women and they are not getting carried away by poll rhetoric. And where is women empowerment when domestic violence, dowry deaths, atrocities continue in the absence of stringent law enforcement, she points out.

The disappointment of women could affect the incumbent Government, is her guess. The political parties do not have any thing new to offer having failed on their earlier promises. Yet the wooing game goes on as usual, she sums up.

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