Focus on female voter is reassuring. But sensitive politics is needed

Source: This post has been created based on the article “Focus on female voter is reassuring. But sensitive politics is needed” published in the Indian Express on 7^th October 2023.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2 Social Justice — Mechanisms, laws, institutions and bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of vulnerable sections.

News: The article discusses the recent phenomenon of political parties placing an emphasis on women voters and enacting women-centric policies. It also highlights the requirement of safeguards to handle the challenges therein.

Madhya Pradesh government’s decision to reserve 35% of all government jobs for women has brought the recent phenomenon of women-centric policies to the fore.

Other states have also addressed women voters by enacting policies on free or subsidized transport, healthcare, housing schemes for women, provision of cheap cooking gas cylinders and increase in maternity benefits.

Why the renewed focus on female voters?

Participation of women in the poll process has increased over the last decade. They have sometimes even overtaken men and have thus emerged as a crucial voting bloc that parties now compete with each other to attract.

What is the need for top-down women-centric policies?

1) It is important in a “male-centric country” where the imagination of the Indian woman was limited to “bachche banane ki machine (the bearer of children)” or “parkati mahilayein (emancipated women with short hair)”.

2) It is crucial for providing a “level-playing field” and an eco-system that offers equal opportunities to all.

3) Access to education, infrastructure, amenities and technology are important for women in an aspirational economy.

What more needs to be done?

Women must not be cornered into women-only compartments. This will lead to the undesirable solidifying of boundaries.

Care should be exercised in ensuring that the language used does not refer to the rightful granting of equal rights as “protective benevolence”.

Safeguards need to be built in against simplistic politics of attaching labels with regards to discussion on women’s rights.

There is a need to draw upon lessons learnt from other areas of social justice to ensure that the idea of representation and empowerment leads to a shared consensus and sets women free.