Mixed reactions to Women's Reservation Bill among men

Subodh Bharagava, a Delhi businessman, was glued to the television watching proceedings in the Rajya Sabha or upper house of parliament, when marshals were called in to forcefully evict seven MPs for unruly behaviour and for disrupting proceedings during the debate on the Women's Reservation Bill.

In the end, the seminal bill was not passed on International Women's Day, as the government had hoped but only a day later. Although the debate was marked by bitterness, political division and ugly scenes of dispute, Bhargava was happy that the first major step had been taken, reversing decades of male-dominated decision-making in India.

"I totally support the decision of the government. This is a long-pending issue and it has taken 13 to 14 years for the government to take a decision. My personal feeling is that everybody, everybody who has some sense, should support the decision of the government in passing this bill. Why have a demarcation between males and female? They have not been treated well in society and they should get equal rights, they must get equal rights and why should they be deprived of this."

Mixed reactions in parliament

The issue of giving women guaranteed representation in the highest echelons of political power in a still deeply traditional society has provoked very intense reactions in parliament.

Both the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Samajwadi Party, allies in the ruling coalition whose main support base is in the Hindi heartland, have fought tooth and nail against the bill, saying it lacks specific quotas for women from lower castes and religious minorities.

Yogesh Mittal, a political activist from Bihar, also felt the government had taken a wrong step. "30 percent reservation is just too much. This should not have happened. What men can do, women can’t do. I feel 30 per cent reservation is too much."

Many male MPs across party lines are uneasy about the bill, although the party whips have forced them to keep quiet. The fact that fewer constituencies will be available to them is not their only problem; they are equally unsettled by the fact that the 181 seats for women will not be fixed, but will rotate.

This means that none of the MPs – male or female - will be certain about their next constituency. As a result, they will not be able to nurse their constituencies in the hope of winning another term, as has been the practice until now.

Some insist on merit

Binder Singh, a factory owner, thinks that seats have to be won on merit not via quotas. "It's like doctors and engineers," he said.

"In parliament, you need people of competence. India is a democracy and this is not a question of woman or man. Everybody who is good is given an opportunity. You have to be capable and you have to work for it."

It will take more than two years after the Women's Reservation Bill is passed in the Lok Sabha for it to be implemented because of long subsequent legislative procedures and other processes.

Author: Murali Krishnan (New Delhi)
Editor: Anne Thomas