Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

Getting their due

All political parties support the Women's Reservation Bill but one-third reservation for women in legislatures continues to be elusive (editorial "Give women their due," March 13). While the concern of some parties that the bill should ensure equitable distribution of seats among different socio-economic groups may not be irrelevant, one wonders why parties have not been able to evolve a consensus on the bill for 11 years. Why have they not passed the bill in its present form and then taken the amendment route they have always used to `evolve' a consensus on many bills? One is forced to conclude that the political fraternity dominated by men is unwilling to give up its stranglehold on power.

Shahabuddin Nadeem,
Bangalore

The argument that the bill will benefit only affluent women and lead to an increase in the number of wives and daughters of politicians capturing the political space is unacceptable. Irrespective of her social and economic background, a woman can understand a woman's plight better. When there is no objection to men from the families of politicians entering politics, why grudge wives and daughters their political space?

Political empowerment is the only solution to the sufferings of millions of women in our country. In the absence of adequate representation for women in the law-making process, laws cannot be equally enforced on them.

J. Trinadha Murty,
Visakhapatnam

Now is the time for women across the country to voice their demand for the passage of the bill. All other demands can be considered within the framework of the law once it is enacted. Due amendments can be introduced after judicious consideration.

Thomas Edmunds,
Chennai

From the days of Razia Sultan, male chauvinists have been opposing, overtly or covertly, the political empowerment of women. This is reflected in the manner the political parties have stalled the bill under one pretext or the other. But as a democracy, India should not allow this antipathy to continue. The threat of one-third reservation being hijacked by the elite sections may be real. But that should not be the reason for delaying the law.

Y.N. Murthy,
Hyderabad

One wonders whether one-third reservation alone will help women overcome problems of oppression, violence, and discrimination when 67 per cent of the legislators continue to have the same attitude towards them. The women legislators will be bound by the policies of their party. Have the existing MPs and MLAs enjoying the support and confidence of their parties solved the problems of women? If issues like violence and oppression are to be resolved, the stress should be on developing social culture.

T.S. Gopalakrishnan,
Chennai

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