Passing of the women's reservation bill by the Indian house of seniors has been lauded by intellectuals as momentous. Or is really so ? The impact it will have on the lives of the women folk is speculated to be stellar by the political and social pundits. I could have never thought so different than before.
India has had a woman Prime Minister way back in the sixties, she represented Uttar Pradesh's Rae Bareilly constituency. Uttar Pradesh has also had the honour of having the first lady Governor in the country in none other than the illustrious Sarojini Naidu in 1947. Sucheta Kriplani was the first woman to become the Chief Minister of any Indian state when the Uttar Pradesh assembly elected her to head the government there way back in 1963. Mayawati became the first Dalit and female Chief Minister of any state in the country when she headed Uttar Pradesh's administration for the first time in 1994. Uttar Pradesh sounds so much like an ideal friendly society of emancipated and empowered women in the country. Baring the clusters of middle class house holds in Lucknow, Kanpur and some other cities, the true status of women folk is glaringly visible in much of the state. Comparing in terms of literacy, higher education, career, women health and safety states such as Kerala, Goa, West Bengal and the entire North East beat Uttar Pradesh hands down and none of the states mentioned have had a lady Chief Minister yet forgetting that any lady Prime Minister would hail from any of these states as of now.
The hard and undeniable fact remains, that women will get equality only when men would want them to get and not when government gives them as a crumb of plum cake on the Women's day. Men, for sure, will not be beaten up and nailed to speak and render in their minds that women actually constitute the other half of their lives, this can only be built by education, better health care and fore-mostly security and justice to our better halves. Crime against women both inside and outside homes has to be dealt with firm and rapid strides. It has to be established in the society that the arms of the justice system have widest reach and firmest grip, in easier words, abuse will not be tolerated any longer. Should charity not begin at home at the first place? Will the men folk be humane now on to voluntarily give up dowry from their better half homes?
We have a long journey to make in giving our better halves the places they so rightfully deserve. There is so much to do and a million steps to think before another million to actually take. As it so very famously is, our polity has a dynastic hold so strong that it is unimaginable to peruse the media without seeing them every day. They cut along party, caste and sectarian lines. It is so easy to predict the next Indian National Congress president will be Rahul Gandhi and then after him the next descendant Gandhi and then another. With over 180 seats set to get reserved for women in the next Lok Sabha, what happens if Amethi gets the reserved women only constituency status by the Election Commission for the term. Mrs. Gandhi will only have to pitch Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from there and Rahul Gandhi from another constituency. Most of men who will be set to loose their seats and subsequent party tickets, will only have to pass the baton to their better halves or daughters or sisters. The deal will remain same for the ordinary women who will remain subdued with their daily chores inside or outside the universe they know.
The journey of equity and equality is really tedious for our women, and only men can make it easier. The better halves do definitely deserve better.
