Women & elections: Low female voting is exception. Few female MLAs is norm

Source: The post is based on the article “Women & elections: Low female voting is exception. Few female MLAs is norm” published in The Times of India on 10th December 2022.

Syllabus: GS 2 – Social Justice

Relevance: Women’s representation in the legislative bodies

News: The article discusses the dismal conditions of the women in the legislative bodies despite of high percentage of voting.

What is the current percentage of female voters?

The current Gujarat election saw a lesser number of female voters than men. However, there has been an overall increase in the number of female voters.

For example, the percentage of women was higher in the elections of Himachal Pradesh. The voter gender gap ratio also improved in every state in the five assembly elections earlier this year.

Even in the 2019 Lok Sabha election women’s turnout was at 67.18% compared to men which were at 67.01%.

Even though there has been an increase in the percentage of female voters, their representation in the legislative bodies is dismal.

What are the reasons behind low female legislators?

There has been less effort in providing women equal representation in the legislative bodies. For example, the women’s reservation bill lapsed despite being passed by the Rajya Sabha in 2010.

One-third reservation has been provided to women in the local body but there is no such efforts for female panchayat leaders to enter into legislative assemblies and Parliament. Further, women also get fewer election seats than men in fighting elections.

Therefore, there is a need to look into the issue and provide equal representation to women in the legislative bodies.

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