Gender, Democracy and Empowerment through Women Sarpanch in Gram Panchayats

Gender, Democracy and Empowerment through Women Sarpanch in Gram Panchayats

“For me, a better democracy is a democracy where women do not only have the right to vote and to elect but to be elected”

 Michelle Bachelet, Head of UN Women, former president and defence minister, Chile.

In 1946, Mahatma Gandhi remarked on the need for a local self-government for rural construction. This led to the emergence of the Panchayati Raj System for governing villages. Today, India has over 250,000 Gram Panchayat with over 31,80,000 elected representatives. Yet the participation of women remains skewed with only 14,53,973 women being elected as the representative, which is around 46% of total participation.  According to the 73rd Amendment of 1993, women must hold at least one-third of the seats in the panchayat. Moreover, 20 Indian states namely Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Tripura, Uttarakhand and West Bengal have made provisions of 50% reservation for women in Panchayati Raj Institutions in their respective State Panchayati Raj Acts. This statistic shows a remarkable journey from the time when women were not even allowed to vote to the time when women are the Sarpanch- the baton holder in such institutions. 

Data has shown with increased women participation in panchayats many issues which have traditionally been ignored by the male members are being resolved. Sanitation and education, for example, are the primary areas that gain focus with the females in offices. Also, the female participants discuss issues such as Girls' Education more frequently. Female participation helps in making the policies of the Gram Panchayat more inclusive and diverse. In a nutshell, the female participants help empower other females of the village and make the environment more conducive for long-term changes.

The women still face several obstacles including a lack of awareness, experience, knowledge, talent, leadership quality, low level of education, and lack of exposure.  The biggest obstacles to women sarpanches performing their role at the village level were lack of experience as leaders, lack of funding from the government for development work, lack of training for women sarpanches, and delays in sanction and permission for development work from the upper level. The elected female representatives are viewed as "puppets" in the Panchayat Raj Institutions despite their representation. Rarely do women work in Panchayat Raj institutions, and the majority of them observe Panchayat meetings in silence. The concept of Sarpanch Pati, where the woman remains the signator but the functioning of the gram panchayat is looked after by the husband is another issue that persists in the country. 

It can be seen that in processes where the presence of a candidate is mandatory, like the filling up of the nomination form, greater participation is seen. While more optional, nonetheless crucial for election activities like collection of funds, the participation is close to none. The legal mechanisms for reservations have not helped change the traditional approach of the society and the family members towards women who are assuming leadership and participatory positions in their villages. Their participation is still being perceived as an act of rebellion or a permission that they have been granted by their male counterparts. The case of Sipra Mandal from Ramnagar Gram Panchayat of Mahakalapada block of Odisha serves as an example. In January 2017, she was contesting Panchayat elections for the first time after the 50% reservation norm was implemented. Her husband, Mrutyunjay, however, was elected as the sarpanch of the same bloc three times in a row.

Gram Panchayats have become a breeding ground for money, muscle and manpower mafias. This situation makes it difficult for first-generation women contestants to contest and win or lose the elections. The elected candidates also face threats of violence, or character assassination from the leaders. An interview of Jagrani Devi, the Gram Pradhan of Hamirpur in UP elected in the 2000 election, taken during a symposium in 2002, throws light on the issue very clearly wherein she states that “Certain problems are always there. Some threaten you with your life whereas others want you to behave like a woman”.

While we are lauding the emergence of All-Women Gram Panchayats in many states, the fact that such Panchayats also emerge because the male members do not wish to work with the females should not be ignored.

Gram Panchayats are a quintessential Indian experiment towards democratic decentralization. There are some examples where women have excelled as Sarpanch in their villages. Aarti Devi, a former investment banker, left her high-paying lucrative job to become one of the youngest heads of the village of Dhunkapara, Odisha. She was successful in achieving 100% literacy in her community. Chhavi Rajawat, a sarpanch of Soda village near Jaipur has been an inspiration for the women in her village. This woman, the sarpanch, has developed her village's roads, toilets, solar energy centres, water supply centres, and banks, achieving new heights of development. 

To increase women’s participation the female leaders should be involved in interaction programmes that are scheduled periodically. To interact with urban female representatives, they should be exposed to urban environments. It's important to encourage successful female leaders to promote their leadership qualities and abilities. The government should honour them at meetings held in rural areas. It will encourage other representatives for rural women. From the Gram-Panchayat to the Zilla Parishad, attendance at panchayat meetings needs to be mandatory. Illiteracy and economic dependence cease the participation of women. Particularly, the majority of rural women are low- or illiterate readers and new participants. They are unaware of the Panchayat office's procedure, rules, and regulations, as well as the various initiatives for development that are run by the Panchayat. The female members of Gram Sabhas think that unemployment is the primary reason behind them being treated unequally by the male members. Economic dependence plays a crucial role in changing the perception of women about themselves and adds to their self-confidence. Hence education and economic independence should be promoted. Improving women’s participation in civic activities is vital for nation-building. 

~ Aneesha Malu