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| With four women in 89-member House JK calls for bigger fair sex reservation | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, Apr 17:-As compared to other states Jammu and Kashmir state needs to have some percentage of seats in the Assembly reserved for women.Women have received a raw deal in Jammu and Kashmir during the last over 50 years because not many among them have been fielded by major mainstream political parties as their candidates during the Assembly elections.
Even in the Lok Sabha elections not a single woman from Jammu and Kashmir has got elected to the Parliament except for one case of Begum Akbar Jahan,wife of Sheikh Abdullah.Madre Meharban was elected to the Lok Sabha twice.Once from Srinagar constituency in 1977 and next time from Anantnag constituency in 1984Again major mainstream political parties have not fielded women candidates for the Lok Sabha
Even after two nominated seats were added to the Assembly the total number of women members of the lower House has ranged between two to four,which includes two nominated women members.The House that was constituted after the 2008 election has four women members and out of them two are elected,Mehbooba Mufti and Sakina Itoo,two are nominated members..This means in a House of 89 members the percentage of women members is kless than five.
After the Panchayati Raj Act was amended and 33 per cent seats were reserved for women a piquant situation arose in the previous Panchayat election when less than 20 per cent women came forward for contesting the election.It is because of the age old tradition where people still believe that while men are for the field women for the hearth.Though the situation has registered a major change in Jammu and kashmir women need to be encouraged while aspisring for taking part in politics.This can be done if the constitution is amended so that if not 33 per cent at least 20 to 25 per cent seats in the Assembly were reserved for women.
Well Jammu and Kashmir seems to follow the tradition that exists in the entire country.Even if India claims to be a developing nation the Lok Sabha that was constituted in 2009 has just 10.3 per cent of seats in the Lok Sabha held by women.Some of the Islamic countries,where domination of women by men is a part of culture,women hold bigger percentage of seats in the Parliament.In Bangladesh 18.6 per cent seats in the parliament are held by women,in Indonesia it is 16.6 per cent,Malaysia 15.4,in Pakistan 21.2 per cent,Afghanistan 25.9.
It is in this context that the Rajya Sabha has passed the constitution amendment Bill providing for 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament.It is for the Lok Sabha now to adopt it.Similary the state legislatures too have to adopt the Bill which could become a law.
What seema to intrigue women scholars in the state is that despite high literacy rate among females they have not been given a chance to enter into the Assembly where they could contribute their energy for ameliorating the lot of women.In Jammu and Kashmir the female literacy percentage is over 43 and hence deserve more than 33 per cent reservation in the state legislature,in civic bodies.
It is to be seen whether the National Conference-Congress ruling coalition initiates some constitutional measures for reserving seats in the Assembly in the near future.Expectations are not high because of the fact that the National Conference and the other Kashmir centric PDP have been trying to revive the "archaic" constitutional provision under which women forefeit their right to inherit or own immovable property if they marry a nonstate subject.Against this there is no such restrictions for men.
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