HVK Archives: The second-class Sex
The second-class Sex - The Times of India
Editorial
()
19 May 1997
Title : The second-class Sex
Author : Editorial
Publication : The Times of India
Date : May 19, 1997
The male political class has repeatedly displayed its extreme aversion to ceding
any more political space to women, but the ferocity with which the women's
reservation Bill was opposed in the Lok Sabha on Friday was unexpected. In a
shocking breach of party discipline, Prime Minister I ]K Gujral was shouted down
by his party members in language which crossed all norms of decorum and decency.
While every political party has the right to express its differences, invective
cannot substitute for logical debate and discussion. But such considerations did
not deter senior Janata Dal leader Sharad Yadav from asking the Prime Minister
"Who do you think you are that you dare to do this ?" as soon as the Bill was
moved. He followed this up with the declaration that women "with short hair" were
not women at all. Mr Yadav's somewhat peculiar notions of gender apart, it is now
clear that most political parties have realised that mouthing politically correct
platitudes on reserving political power for women makes for wonderful
vote-gathering opportunities and there the matter must end. Former Prime Minister
H D Deve Gowda realised this all 'too soon when he came up against a solid phalanx
of opposition from his own party colleagues when the Bill came up in Parliament
during his tenure. Even his conciliatory offer to reduce the percentage of
reservation from 33 to 15 was met with heated resistance. But despite the heroic
efforts to scuttle the Bill, the issue will keep coming back like a recurring
nightmare to haunt our political worthies. Though efforts to split women
parliamentarians on caste lines have succeeded to some extent, by and large, they
have refused to break ranks on the issue. Progressive MPs and women activists
should understand that getting the Bill through will prove a daunting task given
the level of opposition and begin marshalling their resources with greater
intensity without delay.
The insistence on reservations for OBCs within the women's quota as well as for
Muslims are all aimed at one thing-denying women a role in decision- making under
the guise of striving towards greater social justice. After all, such
reservations, except in the case of SC/STs, do not exist in Parliament in the
first place. The derogatory references to the Bill favouring the "bibi brijiade"
should not deter women from pressing ahead with the cause since they come from
those who have not hesitated to install the " baba brigade" at every available
opportunity. The real fear of the male political class is that an empowered woman
will not remain a puppet for too long as the panchayati raj experiment has shown.
It should be clear to those who are agonising over the right manner in which
women should be given more political power that no other measure has worked so
far. If the male political class had got its priorities right, we would not be in
a situation where India's social development indicators are among the lowest in
the world. Women suffer from an adverse sex ratio, poor health care, illiteracy
and inadequate work participation. Political power for women is the vital
catalyst for social change and this can no longer be put off. The male political
establishment must be held to its word. Women in all walks of life are no longer
content to be patronised by the political patriarchy. Fifty years after
Independence, one third share in political power is the least that can be given to
half the population.
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