'Nari Shakti': From aspiration to legislation, how PM Modi made Women's Reservation Bill a reality

Preamble Modi as the Messiah for the aspirational women of New India, where ‘Nari Shakti’ reflects true ‘Rashtra Shakti’. yatra nāryastu pūjyante ramante tatra devatāḥ| yatraitāstu na pūjyante sarvāstatrāphalāḥ kriyāḥ || (“where women are honoured and respected, divinity dwells, without which all actions are fruitless wherein women are not honoured”) The Rig Veda, Atharva Veda and Yajur Veda unanimously proclaimed that women should be given the lead in ruling the nation and in society. “Scholarly women purify our lives with their intellect. Through her actions, she purifies our actions. Through her knowledge, she promotes virtue and efficient management of society.” (20.84). The long overdue step in correcting societal asymmetry. By according to primacy to the Women’s Reservation Bill as the ‘first order of business’ to be tabled on the very first day of the first session in the new Parliament, it will go down in the annals of Bharat’s history as heralding the first legislation to have received parliamentary imprimatur. The Modi government has consistently worked towards according an equal share for women’s participation in nation building and ensuring their ease of living through flagship schemes like Beti Bachao, Ujjwala Yojna and the ownership of house given to women under the PM Awas Yojna, abolition of triple talaq, increased financial inclusion, and by extending collateral free MUDRA loans. To reimagine a more equitable and inclusive social order, it requires that more women-centric reforms are bought centre stage, necessitating to now build consensus on the Uniform Civil Code. Because the more an economy expands and literacy levels rise, there is lesser room for exclusion of the vulnerable, which foremost includes women. Towards a New Bharat, this goal can only be achieved when women attain economic self-sufficiency through equal opportunities in all spheres, thereby lessening the scope for perpetuation of historic injustices, or for the persistence of archaic and anachronistic dominance of males over females. By correcting the gender-imbalance in legislatures, it gives the ruling BJP a cutting edge in electioneering pitches. The pathbreaking Women’s Reservation Bill stuck for 27 years in limbo is finally in the offing. Regardless of the provenance of the Bill, and which party claims credit for claiming ‘the first mover vantage’, it is the Modi-led government that would be accredited with the historic legislation becoming law, targeting its passage by 22 September. By correcting the persistent gender-imbalance in legislatures, the political dividends for the BJP are high on the passage of the bill, as women comprise half of India’s population as also half of the electorate. Currently, less than 15 per cent of the Lok Sabha MPs are women, as compared to the global average of women legislators being 26.2 per cent. The BJP is rightfully all set to capitalise electorally on the bill according to reservation of 33 per cent seats in Parliament and in legislative assemblies. Besides, unlike previous years when parties like the SP and JDU impeded passage of the bill, no party today wants to obstruct passage of the bill and be perceived as being anti-women. However, it is unlikely to be implemented by the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, as the roll out needs the delimitation exercise and a caste census to be completed, which could take upto 2026/2029. Why is there a new found competitive populism on women-centric schemes? In a bid at competitive populism over women voters never seen before, why are Central welfare schemes and all States governments outreaching to cater to this segment? Because the political dividends that accrue are high, as women constitute the largest voting segment. A look at the voting data percentage points to increasing women’s turnout in 2019 Lok Sabha elections, which is a trend reflected even in state assembly polls, which makes for a compelling case to bring centre stage women-centric concerns. It is therefore becoming an electoral imperative, as the turnout of women voters has been steadily increasing since 1962, when 62 per cent of men and only 46.6 per cent of women voted in the Lok Sabha elections. By the 2019 elections, the percentage of women voters rose to 67.2 per cent, surpassing the share of male voters which had stagnated at 67 per cent. The futuristic potential of this legislation portends towards having a cascading effect in increasing Female Labour Force Participation. Policymakers know all too well that there exists a positive correlation between high GDP growth and women’s participation in the economy. When the number of women doubles in our legislatures, it will also set the momentum towards increasing the much needed labour force participation rate (LFPR) where India lags behind. According to the ‘World Employment Outlook Trends’ of the 2023 report, global LFPR engagement rate of women stood at 47.4 per cent in 2022, as compared to men at 72.3 per cent, with India recording an LFPR of 33 per cent in 2022. Any investment in improving the productivity of women has a huge multiplier impact on growth and development. Conclusion: a holistic approach to women’s empowerment. While the Reservation Bill will be a major step towards gender parity, for a more equitable society, the government must continue to take a holistic approach on women’s empowerment. This necessitates increased outlays towards gender-specific budgeting; improving access to quality education, particularly in the higher STEM fields; increased outlays towards women’s health; providing higher access to formal finance and entrepreneurship; extending social welfare protection to underprivileged women and increasing care-infrastructure for working women; bridging the digital divide, as also reducing the gender gap in pay-disparity. The author is ex- Chairperson for the Committee for Financial Inclusion and Financial Literacy, Niti Aayog. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost’s views. Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. 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