Women’s quest for representation in House

I forget which leader recently said that in light of the mess that men have made of politics, it is time for women to be given a chance. As a woman, I have no quarrel with that observation and support it heartily but will our political parties listen to such advice? I have my doubts because for years the Women’s Reservation Bill has been hanging in Parliament and a number of lame excuses are offered by political leaders for the shameful fact that women constitute ever-decreasing numbers in our Parliament and legislative assemblies. One leader went as far as to say that women with short hair and those who wear “lipstick” cannot be trusted, or words to that effect. 

Women in politics need the crutches of a family, mentor or money in order to find a place on Parliament benches. A large number of women parliamentarians are wives, daughters, significant others or daughter-in-laws of powerful men. However, this is not always true: some women have given as good as they got. Jayalalitha, Mamata Banerjee and Mayawati are names that readily come to mind – all of them feisty women who have reduced the men in their parties to quivering jellies. I am sure readers remember the photo of Amma that was prominently displayed by each one of her MPs and the sashtang dandavat performed whenever she was greeted by them. In these egalitarian times, it was sad to see how feudal practices trumped democratic maryada.

I was reminded of all this as I read Jaya Jaitly’s Life among the Scorpions: Memoirs of a Woman in Indian Politics and an updated reprint of Behenji by Ajoy Bose. Political biographies are a rarity in India and many that have been written are either shameless hagiographies or ghost-written. Some, such as Bose’s, are an analysis without a single face-to-face interview with the subject. What comes across is how men gang up when confronted by a woman who wishes to share the high table. They are physically abused and manhandled, a vicious whisper campaign is unleashed to question their moral character and every trick used to trip them on their way to Parliament. Nevertheless, those who survive this obstacle race often go on to become so powerful that no man can stand up to them. Indira Gandhi was initially dismissed as a ‘gungi gudiya’, Sonia Gandhi’s Italian birth became a convenient barb to question her commitment to India, Jayalalitha was not allowed anywhere near MGR’s body at his funeral. 

Yet look at the political landscape today – is there a man in her party who can stand up to a Mamata Banerjee? Indira Gandhi and now Sonia Gandhi made the Congress virtually a dynasty where power is handed to a chosen child, the same is true for Mayawati and Mamata Banerjee while Jayalalitha continues to rule from beyond her grave in Tamil Nadu. Early experiences taught these women to trust no one but their own families or chosen acolytes, often resulting in damaging their own reputation and destroying the structure of their political outfits. They rule by instilling fear and create an aura of such unpredictability that none dare to tell them the truth. Locked away in their citadels (10 Janpath or Poes Garden), the basis of their power stems from their becoming demigoddesses who cannot be questioned or approached. Perhaps this is a flaw that women have because ruling from behind a curtain has a long history in our land. Recall the famous scene in Ray’s film version of Shatranj ke Khilari where Wajid Ali Shah’s mother speaks from behind a ‘chilman’ to plead her son’s case to General Outram. Mughal princesses similarly maintained the modesty of the purdah but that did not stop them from playing naked politics when needed. Shah Jahan’s daughters were very active in the war of succession that broke out among his sons after his death.

However, it cannot be denied that the women have never had it easy in politics and this is as true of mature democracies in America and England as of India. Margaret Thatcher, Theresa May and Hillary Clinton have all had to battle their own scorpions and vipers. As Jaya Jaitly ruefully acknowledges, there is little point in trying to be decent and honourable if you are playing to win. Even our devis rode tigers to instil fear and awe among their devotees. The gentler qualities of music, learning and nurturing were handled by those goddesses who stayed away from the business of battles and blood-spilling. As long as Jaya Jaitly kept her work limited to nurturing our crafts and textiles, she was accepted as a respected member in the Samata Party but when she wanted a place on the high table, she was shown her place by the men who would not allow a woman to run the party.

Finally, I must register my disgust at the revolting level of language our political leaders increasingly use in their public statements and political campaigns. When highly educated politicians speak like rough louts, they only deepen the chasm between communities.