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| Women empowerment | | | | The Congress President and UPA Chairperson, Sonia Gandhi's whirlwind tour of Jammu on April 12 has generated a new enthusiasm among the Congress rank and file in the state, more precisely in Jammu region. Although her visit was primarily aimed at addressing a convention of women, organized by the women wing of the J&K Congress Committee, Sonia Gandhi also availed of the opportunity to visit Jagti, a place about 16 kms from Jammu city, where tenements for Kashmiri migrants are being constructed. Although Madam Gandhi's visit to Jammu and her address at a mammoth gathering of women folk coming from all over the state and mainly from Jammu region, did kick start the election campaign of the Congress and it goes to the credit of the women Congress workers of the state that their convention assumed a special significance, with the election campaign of Congress being launched, with this event, yet the poor representation to the fair sex in all the public bodies in the state is a matter that needs to be pondered by the Congress party. Even in the show which was claimed to be an all women event, the lime light was stolen by the male leaders of the party and women leaders were conspicuous with their absence on the dias with Madam Sonia Gandhi. Presently no woman is included in the Council of Ministers in the state. However on the eve of Sonia's visit, a female Congress leader of long standing from Jammu, Swaranlata Bhagat who is the President of Mahila Wing of J&K Congress was appointed as Vice Chairperson J&K Social Welfare Advising Board, with the rank equivalent to Minister of State. Regrettably in the coalition government earlier led by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and now by Ghulam Nabi Azad women have been by and large ignored in getting their representation. It was only for a short while that the only elected Congress women MLA Suman Bhagat was inducted as Cabinet Minister. In fact while PDP did not give ticket to any of the females in the 2002 elections, the Congress who did give tickets to a few ladies could get elected only one as MLA. Later two females, one each from Congress and PDP were inducted in the state assembly, by nomination by the Governor, in keeping with the state constitution which provides for induction of two women in the assembly by the Governor, if they are not duly represented through elections. Two other Congress women were inducted in the Upper House. Even the women commission in the state is headless for a pretty long time. In nutshell only lip sympathy is paid to empowerment of women whereas in practice they find little place in the male dominated field of politics in this state. One can hope that in the forthcoming elections to the state assembly the political parties will give due representation to the females by giving tickets to at least at the ratio of 30% of overall number of candidates fielded by them. The 33% mandatory reservation to the women in Parliament and state assemblies, the bill for the same to be adopted by the Parliament still being stalled by some parties on frivolous excuses, it is hoped that the political parties on their own will make good this shortcoming. |
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