Nari Hai to Mumkin Hai: How women voters propelled BJP to victory

“Behnon aur bhaiyon,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a post on X after election results in four states – Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan Chhattisgarh, and Telangana were declared. Swapping the usual greeting of bhaiyon aur behnon was a testimony of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s increased focus on women. Yes, women matter. India’s politicians have learned this and in the recently concluded Assembly elections, they did all they could to woo this vote bank. This seems to have paid off for the BJP who won all three Hindi heartland states. Not only are women voting in large numbers, but they are also important decision-markers. Their support has played a big role in victories this election and the results are proof. We take a look at the women-centric schemes introduced this election season and their impact on the results. Wooing women In Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh, the BJP campaigned around issues that concern women. The state where the impact of women was most felt was in Madhya Pradesh, where the saffron party won 163 seats 230-member Assembly and Congress was reduced to 66. The Grand Old Party promised 11 guarantees, which included several freebies or “revdi” as it is popularly called by PM Modi and other senior party netas. But it had fewer takers. The BJP has been in power in the state continuously since 2003, barring 15 months between 2018 to 2020. Its social welfare schemes have kept people in the state satisfied. And what worked wonders for the party this year were the “Ladli” schemes. [caption id=“attachment_13462922” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan celebrates the festival of Raksha Bandhan during a ‘Ladli Behna’ scheme programme, at Jamburi Maidan, in Bhopal, on 27 August 2023. File photo/PTI[/caption] The “Ladli Laksmi” and “Ladli Behana” were a big hit among women. In March, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the Ladli Behna Yojana, under which all women over the age of 23 would get Rs 1,000 every month. The first disbursals were made in June and the CM said that the age limit would be reduced to 21 years and promised to increase the monthly sum to Rs 3,000 from next year. Under the Ladli Lakshmi Yojana, financial aid to women up to the age of 21 was increased by 40 per cent to Rs 2 lakh. In the Madhya Pradesh Budget for 2023-24, the government had allocated Rs 8,000 crore for the Ladli Behna Yojana and Rs 929 crore for the Ladli Laxmi Yojana. These numbers will go up significantly next year. But for now, the return on this investment has been great. In Rajasthan, where the BJP wrested power from the Congress, the ruling party was hoping to win women’s hearts by launching around 10 schemes exclusively for them and running another 34 which would benefit them. But what seems to have struck a chord instead is the safety issue in Rajasthan raised by the BJP. [caption id=“attachment_13462902” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Women wait to cast their votes for the Rajasthan Assembly election, in Ajmer, on 25 November. More than 74 per cent of women voted in the state. PTI[/caption] In Chhattisgarh, the BJP included financial assistance for women in its manifesto. The party proposed Rs 12,000 for unmarried women voters as an annual allowance, a scheme announced by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in the state. A senior BJP leader from Chhattisgarh told News18 that former chief minister Raman Singh actively pitched for a woman-centric financial assistance scheme. In party meetings, he said the manifesto must include a scheme like Madhya Pradesh’s Ladli Behna. Two days before the first phase of elections in the state, Shah announced the Mahtari Vandan Yojana. Also read: Lotus blooms, grand old party wilts: India’s political map updated How focus shifted to women Elections in West Bengal in 2021 and Karnataka earlier this year were proof of how women could impact the outcome of polls. It was Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee who benefitted from the Laxmi Bhandar scheme which promised Rs 500 to all women voters. The Trinamool leader won with a landslide victory. In Karnataka, the Congress adopted a similar strategy, announcing financial assistance – Gruha Lakshmi – in its election manifesto. It won in big numbers in the southern state and decided to go with a similar plan in MP, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, according to a report in News18. At first, the BJP was reluctant to turn to financial assistance to woo women voters. But later made similar promises in MP and Chhattisgarh. After analysing the percentage of women voters, the saffron party banked on them and they delivered. [caption id=“attachment_13462972” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] BJP workers and supporters celebrate the party’s win in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh during the counting of votes for the Assembly elections, in Patna. PTI[/caption] How women voted for the BJP More and more women are coming out and casting their votes, leading from the front in Madhya Pradesh. In 2013, 70.1 per cent of women voters cast their ballot, climbing up to 76 per cent in 2023. According to Election Commission Data, Rajasthan has 2.51 crore women voters in the state for this election and in this year’s election, 74.72 per cent of women came to vote. In 2018, female voting was 74.75 per cent, including postal ballots. In Chhattisgarh, there was a marginal drop from 77.3 per cent in 2013 to 76.2 per cent in 2023, reports India Today. [caption id=“attachment_13462942” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Supporters of the BJP celebrate the party’s win in Rajasthan state elections in Jaipur on 3 December. AP[/caption] “The women vote is now decisively with the BJP and this is now a pan-India phenomenon,” wrote Akhilesh Mishra, a BJP supporter and CEO of BlueKfrat Digital Foundation in a post on X. The state Assembly elections, experts say, are a precursor to the 2024 general elections. The BJP is expected to stick to what it has got right and women will continue to be a priority. This was evident from PM Modi’s speech after Sunday’s victory. Acknowledging the support he said that women were among the only “four castes”, others being youths, farmers, and power, whose empowerment would strengthen the country. “Women believe only the BJP can guarantee their security, safety and dignity… I want to assure women that all the promises made to them will be fulfilled 100 per cent,” the PM said. This is what women want. With inputs from agencies