Riding for change: The Lady Bike Riders who are urging Bihari women to speak up

Patna: Rok soko to rok lo (stop us if you can), goes their campaign theme. And, right now the Lady Bike Riders of Bihar seem unstoppable. Breaking free of the inhibitions imposed by a patriarchal society, a group of young women have been on their bikes for weeks spreading the message of how women can empower themselves by voting. They are exhorting women to come out of their homes and vote in favour of candidates of their choice. The group of bikers is made up of women who have joined the initiative voluntarily and perform stunts on racing bikes like the GTR 650, Continental GT and Pulsar 220. They urge women voters to cast their vote independently, and not on the basis of what their husbands or families tell them. Bihar has 55 million (46.6 percent) women voters, which is the fourth highest in the country, and in the past few polls they have outnumbered men at polling booths. “Gone are the days when we used to be ignored by the government and our feudal society. Now, we are making our presence felt in every walk of life. Therefore, it is high time that we should come out to vote in favour of the candidate we wish to elect and break the perceived notion that women vote in a similar fashion as male family members,” Sanjana Saxena, the leader of the bikers’ group, told Firstpost. [caption id=“attachment_2450360” align=“alignleft” width=“1280”]  The Lady Bike Riders strike a pose. Image courtesy: Tarique Anwar/ Firstpost[/caption] Sanjana was an assistant sub-inspector in Bihar Police but quit to work for the cause of empowering women. She claims the group makes a strong impact on women. When asked why they chose this method of raising awareness, Kankarbagh resident, Nidhi Kumari, says, “Riding a bike (by women) is a challenge to the patriarchy. It breaks popular notions." “We get immense confidence when we ride a motorbike and perform difficult stunts,” Kumari, who happens to hold a black belt in martial arts, said. The biker group is also challenging the caste equations political parties are banking on in this election, by bringing together women from a cross-section of society. [caption id=“attachment_2450364” align=“alignleft” width=“1280”]  The bikers at an event in Patna. Image courtesy: Tarique Anwar/ Firstpost[/caption] “We have representation from various social classes. We aim to send out a positive message that despite being born and brought up in a caste-obsessed society like Bihar, we are caste-neutral. We should keeping in mind our welfare, not caste,” Sonam Jha, an alumnus of prestigious Patna Women’s College, said.  Jha is a choreographer by profession. The women bikers are also making a film, with Saxena playing the lead, to show what it means to be a woman in the state and how much she has to suffer on city roads daily. “The 90-minute movie being made without any star cast aspires to make women aware about their rights. It will highlight their problems and suggest the ways to handle it,” says Muskan Sinha, who has worked in several TV shows. The daughter of a banker, 15-year-old Muskan is in class 11 at Patna’s Bishop Scott Girls School and aspires to become an IIT graduate. [caption id=“attachment_2450368” align=“alignleft” width=“1280”]  Image courtesy: Tarique Anwar/ Firstpost[/caption] Women voters in the state had a major impact in the October 2005 re-election, which was held after the polls earlier that February threw up a hung assembly. That year, the number of women who voted was 2 percent higher than men. The number of male voters had fallen by 3 percent in that election. In 2010, 54.5 percent of women voters cast their votes. Only 51.5 percent of men did the same.  In that election the JD(U)’s seat tally crossed 100 for the first time. It was trend that was seen again in the 2014 general elections too. Realising the importance of women voters, the JD(U) and the BJP are trying hard to target this bloc. Prime Minister Narendra has been constantly trying to reach out to women voters by talking about his ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ campaign and appealing to build toilets for girls in government schools. BJP President Amit Shah has directed all his MP’s and ward workers from Bihar to gift the ‘Pradhan Mantri Bima Suraksha Yojana’ (an insurance scheme) to as many ‘sisters’ as they can. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has countered by announcing that almost 3.5 lakh contractual teachers will receive a pay scale that amounts to a pay hike from 1 August. Half the contractual teachers are women. And the bikers’ gang is doing its bit to press home to women the advantage they enjoy. More power to them!