Gender sensitivity - Parliament still has a long way to go

However, it is ironical that the Indian Parliament is yet to pass the Women's Reservation bill

While India is hosting a two day global conference of the Inter- Parliamentary Union on “Gender Sensitive Parliaments”, its ironical that the Indian parliament is yet to pass the Women’s Reservation bill. The international conference to be inaugurated by President Pranab Mukherjee at Parliament house on Wednesday, will see women Speakers of parliaments across the world including Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar deliberate on  ensuring greater participation of women in law making and the parliament’s capacity to champion gender equality issues.

Meira Kumar may be the first lady to be the Speaker, but India’s track record on women representation in Parliament is not enviable. It is only in this present 15th Lok Sabha that the number of women MPs is just above ten percent; 58 MPs out of the 543 are women constituting 11 per cent of the total strength. 

 

Political parties are deeply divided over the issue of setting aside 33 per cent seats for women in the Lok Sabha, and in all state legislative assemblies.

The Women's Reservation Bill or the 108th constitutional amendment bill, has been pending since 1996 and the controversial bill has been put on the backburner ever since. A day after Women’s Day (March 8th), the UPA II at the behest of its chairperson Sonia Gandhi, managed to get the bill passed in the Rajya Sabha on March 9, 2010. This was despite the stiff opposition from regional parties like the JD(U) and RJD and the threat of withdrawal of support by the Samajwadi party. Since then it hasn’t succeeded in pushing the bill through in the Lok Sabha.

Globally, women’s representation in legislatures has been far from remarkable. As per the data of the Inter- Parliamentary Union, only 37 women head one of the houses of the 190 Parliaments, 77 of which are bicameral.

Overall women occupy only 13.5 per cent of the total 274 posts of Presiding Officers of Parliament or of one of its Houses. 

The road to ensuring equitable representation of women in our legislative bodies appears still to be a long way off.