Bill and will

The failure of Thursday's all-party conference to evolve a consensus on reservation for women in Parliament and State Legislatures is becau...

The failure of Thursday8217;s all-party conference to evolve a consensus on reservation for women in Parliament and State Legislatures is because of the doublespeak most political parties indulge in on this issue. It is for this very reason that the Deve Gowda Government chickened out when it came to moving a Bill earmarking 33 per cent Parliamentary and legislative seats for women. By referring the Bill to a select committee, it demonstrated that discretion was the better part of valour. Most parties support the Bill as they do not want to antagonise women voters. But in their heart of hearts, they do not want women to play a greater political role as can be inferred from their steadfast refusal to field more women candidates in elections. Since they do not have the courage of conviction to oppose the Bill, they have found ways to complicate the issue. In fact, obfuscation seemed to be the only objective of the all-party meet right from the word go. The most ludicrous was the stand of the Janata Dal which, while insisting on an early clearance of the Bill, wants to club it with reservation for the Other Backward Castes. Small wonder, on Friday, the Dal members were the most vociferous in opposing the introduction of the Bill by none other than their own Prime Minister. Some of the parties have even gone to the extent of demanding proportional representation for all minority communities.

Given the far-reaching consequences of the Bill, it is not surprising that it has evoked sharp, though contradictory, reactions even from women8217;s organisations. By now what is certain is that the contentious Bill will open the floodgates of such demands, which are not only difficult to fulfill but are against the very interests of the polity. Reservation for backward castes and minorities in Parliament and legislatures is infructuous. It is certainly not analogous to reservation for jobs in government service, where because of educational and social backwardness various communities are unable to muster adequate representation. But reservation for political posts is an altogether different ball game. For instance, an illiterate Phoolan Devi might not get a government job but that did not prevent her from becoming an MP. What matters in an election is the numerical strength of the voters a party or a candidate can influence. In the past the numerically inferior upper castes, particularly Brahmins, were able to rule the roost in politics, particularly in the North. But in the Mandalised polity it is the backwards who call the shots. Take the case of Bihar or U.P, where it is impossible to keep the backward castes at bay in any political party. The emergence of Kalyan Singh in the BJP is a reflection of this ground reality, as recognised by a party which was once considered pro-upper caste.

Proportional representation, as demanded by the Indian Union Muslim League and some Muslim MPs belonging to the Janata Dal, was tried out under the British. It proved a disaster. If the obnoxious system is revived, it will only perpetuate the minority status of the communities even in politics. Why should, for instance, Christians have only two or three per cent seats in the Lok Sabha, which will be proportionate to their numerical strength, when they can win more? That holds true for Muslims and all other communities, groups and factions.