To Be A Woman In Haryana Politics
In poll-bound Haryana, women’s political identity has been historically shaped by patriarchal, kinship, and gender norms. But their role in the protest movements of the last few years is making a difference
Why A Workers’ Rights Activist Has Jumped Into The Electoral Fray
Aditi, a member of the Revolutionary Workers’ Party of India, has contested elections multiple times at both local and national levels but has never won. She says that winning was never the point
In Maharashtra, Women Activists Of Anti-BJP Front Join Hands ‘For Democracy’
Women activists from all the parties that allied to forge the Maha Vikas Aghadi are campaigning with a never-before show of solidarity
Women’s Collectives Are Pitching Their Own Manifestos To Parties, Candidates
From women belonging to nomadic tribes to cane-cutters, small social and workers’ groups are presenting their charter of demands to politicians and parties contesting the ongoing elections
How Young Women In India Are Carving Space For Themselves In Politics
They don’t helicopter into villages and vamoose. We speak to young women who are political newcomers on how they ensure constant interaction with people
‘Sandeshkhali Shows That Women Are Not Passive Beneficiaries of Welfare Schemes’
The fact that they are resisting exploitation ruptures the popular political image of marginalised women, says political scientist Proma Raychaudhury
For Young Women, Savitribai Phule’s Legacy Of Rebellion Is Empowering
The bright red slash of kumkum across her forehead has become a mark of feminist solidarity
After Recent Elections, Women’s Share Increases In 4 State Assemblies
Two in five women fielded by major parties won in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Telangana elections
Women Win In Tougher Poll Fights In Rajasthan, Yet Don’t Get Enough Chances
In the last two decades of their rivalry in Rajasthan, only around 10% of the candidates picked by the BJP and Congress have been women
With No Women Legislators, Mizoram Buckles Up For Assembly Elections
Since it attained statehood, women have made for only 4% of all candidates who have contested in Mizoram’s electoral history
Intersectionality, The Missing Link In The Women’s Reservation Bill
Intersectionality has long been ignored in India’s mainstream feminist movement as a critical issue
“We’re Capable. We Can Do It”; Jagadevi’s Decade-Long Engagement With Local Governance
Jagadevi, a seasoned elected woman representative, is currently serving as a ward member of the Chittawadi gram panchayat in north-east Karnataka’s Bidar district. She has been […]
“They Want To Show Us Our ‘Place’. We Will Continue To Show Up” Shahida Banu Takes Head-On Patriarchal Mores
Shahida Banu’s decision to run for the seat of a sarpanch of Kuraj panchayat in Rajsamand district of Rajasthan was met with great resistance from the […]
Why Manipur’s Women Remain Underrepresented in Electoral Politics
Manipur is all set to elect its 12th state legislative assembly as it goes to polls in a 2 phase election, with the electorate voting on […]
A young Dalit woman Challenges Patriarchy in Panchayat Politics
For Khublata Regar (31), a Dalit woman, the decision to run for the office of the Sarpanch (president) in the Gram Panchayat elections in Potlan in […]
“Young People Should Run The Panchayat Administration”: Story Of A Young Adivasi Woman Leader
For Laxmi Bhil (23), the Bhil Adivasi Sarpanch (President), Kabra Village Council, Bhilwara District, Rajasthan, contesting elections was both taxing and rewarding. A nursing student, Laxmi […]
“I will stand by them, fight for their rights”: One Dalit Woman Panchayat Leader’s Fight For Social Justice
For Lokamma (30), a Dalit woman leader, who won her seat in Hokarna Panchayat in Bidar district, in the Gram Panchayat elections in December 2020 in […]
Women’s Political Representation In Assam Slips To Its Lowest In 20 Years
Fewer women will now occupy seats in the newly elected Vidhan Sabha (state legislative assembly) in Assam in 2021. Six women were elected in the recently […]
From ‘Didi’ to ‘Banglar Nijer Meye’: The Rebranding of Mamata Banerjee
‘I will win Bengal on one leg and in the future, will get victory in Delhi on two legs’, thundered Mamata Banerjee, the current chief minister […]
Long In The Backseat In Kerala Politics, Women Now Claim Their Space
Kerala’s first Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) was a woman.Rosamma Punnoose, 44 years-old when Kerala elected its first post-Independence legislative assembly in 1957, was elected from […]
All-Women Panchayats In Uttarakhand Reimagine Post-Covid Futures
“This is just the beginning; there is much to do and fight for”, said Kavita Arya (31), Dalit Pradhan ( village council head) of Rauliyana Gram […]
Women Leaders Breathing Life Into Van Panchayats in Uttarakhand
Uttarakhand is home to the fierce ‘Chipko Movement.’ Led by the bold and spirited women in the 1960s, the movement was one of the many significant […]
Adivasi Women Claim Power In Local Elections
Badami Bai (32), had a problem on her hands, just a week before the Panchayat (India’s directly elected village councils) elections in India’s western state of […]
When Violence Is the Cost Of Doing Politics
When Mamta (26), was elected to Jayadara Gram Panchayat ( lowest tier in India’s 3 tier local governance system) in Sirohi district of Rajasthan in 2015, […]
Women Continue To Be Underrepresented in India’s Parliament
Women’s political participation remains abysmally low in the Lok Sabha- the directly elected House of the Parliament as well as state legislative assemblies. The current Lok […]
Women Continue To Be Underrepresented in Delhi Assembly
Delhi Vidhan Sabha, the elected body of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, has a dismal representation of women. Only 9% of the elected MLAs in […]
Women’s Political Participation Sees A Steady Increase In Jharkhand
Women’s political representation in Jharkhand has seen a constant upward surge since the state came into existence in 2000. The proportion of women Members of Legislative […]
Haryana’s Women Carve a Larger Role in The State’s Politics
In Haryana, a state with a skewed sex ratio (913 girls to 1000 boys, an improvement from 830 girls in 2011), there is one gender indicator […]
Women Hold Fewer Ministerial Positions In State Governments
Telangana, the newest state in Southern India, finally has women ministers in the state’s council of ministers for the first time in its history. In a […]
Illiterate, Married at 11, Mother At 12: Panchayat President Now Changes Fates
Married against her wishes at 11 to her dead sister’s husband, Sidhamallamma Kanchappa gave birth to her first child at home when she was 12. It […]
In Bihar’s Political Realignment, Women Suffer
As a first-time member of the legislative assembly (MLA) in Bihar, Jyothi Devi, 46, did well over her five-year term: She had 10 bridges—some of which were demanded […]
From Proxies To Politicians: Bihar’s Female MLAs
Thirty five years ago, Bhagirathi Devi was a sweeper in the block development office in Narkatiyaganj, a town in Bihar’s West Champaran district. Today, she is a third-term […]
