Amidst euphoria over the government tabling the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, women rights activists in Karnataka are cautious and skeptical, given the long history marked by many hopes belied.
Many false starts
“We have seen so many false starts, and later the momentum fizzling out. The proof of the pudding is in the eating. While welcoming the government’s decision to table the Bill, we also realise this is not a done deal yet and we are anxiously waiting to see how it pans out this time,” said Tara Krishnaswamy, co-founder of Political Shakti, a non-partisan group working to improve women’s representation in politics.
The Bill has to be not only passed in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha but also in 15 Assemblies. Meanwhile, the Bill doesn’t address the “OBC quota within quota” that derailed the Bill earlier. Moreover, even if it is passed now, it will come into effect only after the next round of delimitation following the next decennial census, Ms. Krishnaswamy pointed out.
“That is a lot of time and many things can change by then,” she said. The next round of delimitation is scheduled for 2026. However, given that the 2021 decennial census is yet to even take off, that date is unlikely to be kept.
‘Incremental step’
K.S. Vimala, of All India Democratic Women’s Rights Association (AIDWA), said while they welcomed the “incremental step” of tabling the Bill in the Parliament, she said the credit must go to a quarter-century-long women’s rights movement and not to any government.
“Why the delay in operationalising the law? Why not 2024? This country’s women will not be fooled again. We want the Bill to be operationalised for the upcoming 2024 general elections itself, or else, the Prime Minister and his party will be exposed as trying to hoodwink the women of this country,” she said.
“It is sad that the Bill seems to be being used as a political posturing ahead of elections, with an aim to consolidate women as a vote bank. But even without delivering them what is being promised. It appears like a post-dated cheque that can bounce anytime in the meantime,” said women’s rights activist Madhu Bhushan, of Naveddu Nilladiddare, a network of women’s groups in the State.
The redeeming feature
Ms. Bhushan said that the “only redeeming feature” of what has happened now is that the system seems to have finally woken up to the fact that women are a powerful constituency. “Now we the women need to wake up to the fact that we are a powerful constituency that cannot be taken for yet another ride,” she added.
