Major Political Demographic Change in Punjab- What is in it for women?

Punjab’s political atmosphere was full of hopes of change in elections 2022. Even a non-political person like me did not want to miss witnessing this historical moment. Hence, spent 4-hour (Canada-India time difference) till midnight rooting for the only party which has some chances to bring “change”. More than that, I wanted to see if people have changed.

People owned up to their decision and now AAP is ruling Punjab. Not to sound critical (and that’s exactly how it will sound), it is only a small shift for women. It is interesting, yet equally insulting that for the sake of women empowerment, party has promised to pay Rs 1000 to women who are above 18 years of age. For starters, women need more than Rs 1000 a month. Even more than that, they need necessities like higher education, more women oriented jobs, freedom from domestic violence and if we are on the subject, equal human rights.

What Does The Statistics Say About Punjab Assembly?

After my excitement had worn off, I went online to see the statistics, and they are shocking. People who say that gender gap does not exist in Punjab, should see this:

1. Out of 117 winning candidates, 13 are women. Only 11% are the chosen ones.
2. Only 93 women got tickets/filed for nomination, rest 1209 were male candidates. In a state with nearly 50% of the women voters, 7% of the women candidates were given tickets.
3. Punjab cabinet has 13 members, with mere 1 woman.

Why Does It Matter?

1. It is a simple math; Women who are half the population- should have half the decision makers. For example, in Punjab legislative assembly, 11% of women cannot decide in favour of 50% of the state’s women themselves, they need 89% of men in favour. That is why chosen candidates see their voices fading in the government’s decision-making process.
2. Some of the women related issues have not even come to the light because of the unequal representation. Equal participation of women leaders in raising concerns on bigger platforms serves a better chance for these matters to come to light. For example, the issue of sanitary pads. Not every woman can afford sanitary pads and there is so much politicians can do. But it is a taboo and men cannot even say the term “sanitary pad”, let alone making decisions involving them.
3. According to a Harvard study conducted in 2012, Women are better leaders than men. Women have to work harder than men to prove themselves, Whereas men strive for power and control. In a country like India, where politics means power and it is completely opposite notion of what it actually should mean, there is an urgent need to bring in more women politicians to change the course of present politics- for a better nation. New Zealand’s prime minister, Jacinda Ardern, is a living example of a woman leader who did incredible work during pandemic.
4. Just notice how many 15 year old girls want to be next Alia Bhatt and how few want to be next Pratibha Devisingh Patil. The reason is that there are not enough women politicians to look up-to. Time to close the gender cap will always remain 136 years if steps are not taken now.

The Ground Reality in Punjab.

In an attempt to woo women voters, parties promised cash money and even gas cylinders to homemakers. Why is it that women voters are pleased but no attempts were made to give more tickets to them? It is sad to hear that the highest percentage of seats given to women candidates is only 10% in 2022. As a matter of fact, the party is promoting this fact in their favour. In some regions, more women turned up to vote than men, but only a few were voting for the same-sex candidates.

It might not even be because women are restrained from running for the seats or from filing the nominations for the seat. There are more shortcomings, like:

1. Muscle and money are major factors for determination of a future politician. Something most aspiring politician women do not possess.
2. Lack of encouragement to women to join politics from the family members.
3. On district level, women are merely used as a tool to win the ticket but it is men who run the show on their behalf.
4. Whether it is making policies or bringing them to life, women are scrutinized by society simply under the notion that men perform this duty well.

With all this being said and done, statistics of the present government are better than their predecessors. More women have emerged in 2022 in the history of Punjab politics. It is a sign that we are starting from the baby steps, and it will be a long journey.