Grassroots Women’s Empowerment

Editorial:
Barely four years since the State Government took the strong initiative to reserve 40% of the Panchayats wards for women, Sikkim is now looking at a 50/50 representation with the Assembly having passed an amendment which scales up women’s representation at the panchayat level to 50 per cent. The prescribed minimum reservation for women in panchayats is 33% and this is what most states stick to, and yet Sikkim has consistently taken this representation up from 40 to 50% in the space of one term of the panchayats. Unfortunately, this major decision was sidelined by other processes within and outside the Assembly and the celebration with which the womenfolk here should have received the development was admittedly muted. The lack of response does not however take away from the significance of the gesture and the amendment is definitely a huge step forward towards securing an empowered future for the State’s ladies.
 It is also a very brave move by the ruling party, since politics is essentially a male-dominated domain and although it found enough women candidates to fill the 40% quota last time around, half the panchayat strength is a substantial scaling up. Conversely, it can also be taken as a sign that the empowerment has worked well enough with the 40% reservation to ease in a hike. Agreed, the party has an organised cheli morcha, but contesting elections and holding office, even at the gram panchayat unit level, requires consistent commitment which is not easy to find. With the improved efforts at devolving more powers to panchayat representatives, enough work will hopefully be generated to make them quicker learners and busier leaders.
There will be those who will want to read political calculations into the latest development, but what cannot be ignored is the fact that in the increased jurisdiction of Panchayati Raj Institutions, the government is placing substantial currency on the capacities of the womenfolk to make development more uniform and collaborative. It also needs to be accepted that to make the gesture worthwhile, the women also need to take the initiative and test how far they can stretch this effort to increase their involvement in decision-making. The concept of reservations to deliver empowerment is not perfect, it has many flaws but most of its limitations are imposed by the benefited sections themselves. Take the reservation for women in Panchayats all over the country. The policy fails to deliver the required results in the country because many women Panchayats from the reserved wards are stand-ins for their more powerful and politically connected husbands. Instead of delivering empowerment, this willingness of the womenfolk to allow such subversion only reinforces subjugation. Sikkim has a chance to play the reservation concept and the new quota to deliver real empowerment. The moment delimitation of reserved wards is announced, the womenfolk of the earmarked wards should come together and agree on a candidate. The ruling party is on record assuring that panchayat candidates will be chosen on people’s recommendations. Other political outfits, should they choose not to stay away from this grassroots election exercise yet again, should follow suit. Given the sheer numbers involved, even if half the candidates were decided by the womenfolk among themselves, it will make the job of political parties easier. These constituencies will also have male voters, but if the womenfolk unite, they can ensure a better than fighting chance for their candidate and this will convince any party to offer her the ticket. The practise of token women Panchayats has to be broken and now access to half the panchayat berths makes it possible for women to do so. If the women were to demolish this practise and consciously ignore candidates who have been propped up by the male side of their families, Sikkim could be looking at real empowerment. They have been provided the stepping stool to reach there, now for them to take the leap...