Literature Review

How Gendered Was Women Participation in

Election 2004 by Rajeshwari Deshpande

Bharat Gupta
20091116





The author begins by stating how from the very beginning of 1990s woman participation
was thought and that how by late 90s there were political reforms like reservations of
woman in Panchayti raj which could be seen in the 1998 and 2004 elections.
The author discusses and recognizes the two layers of discrimination a woman has to face in
the Indian society. First, the discrimination a woman faces due to her position in the society
as woman and second due to the social structure i.e. the class and caste a woman belongs to.
The author takes statistical data from the 2004 and 1998 election and compares them and
shows that how the woman as voter turnout in the North-East region states and a few other
smaller states were better than males compared to big states like Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan,
Bihar etc.
In the article, the author, with the help of NES survey proves that how women are less
definite about political issues than man and points the reasons for them. The author believes
that lower literacy rates, less exposure to media (radio, newspaper) for current affairs were
few of the major factors for their inconclusive political opinion. But the author disapproves
the fact through the survey that the women are influenced by families position on political
parties or political leader to form their political opinion. The survey, the author mentioned
proved that most of the women take their own decisions themselves. Further, the author raises
the argument that it the structuring of the political parties that is the main obstacle in
recruitment of woman in the political parties. She points out the fact that how consistently
eight percent of the Lok Sabha seats were occupied by woman. She argues that voters are not
apprehended about woman candidates, but patterns of woman voting reveals that woman
leaders revel a definite focused understanding of the political choices.
The author further assesses how congress enjoyed definite advantage of the woman voters
over BJP as a result of the rise of the new social bloc of the BJP. The author, using data
shows that how congress has two percent lead among the woman voters and that how in
terms of gender loyalty the percentage reaches as high as 12 percent. Through data she argues
that BJP enjoys advantage in woman groups belonging to the advantage, educated and urban
population whereas lacks to Congress where it enjoys an advantage over the rural, lower
caste and Muslim woman.
Voting pattern discussed reveals that vote and participation gets shaped through political
attitude and opinion woman have, but one the other aspect socio-economic issues, the author
refers to the other questions of the survey that were attitudinal questions. Through the survey
the author shows that after 1996 there were consensus on woman issues not only by woman
but by both genders, they supported reservation in parliament, higher education, work etc.
through this the author proves the point of agreemenet in both genders and that the consensus
were more in urban, upper caste and educated population. On the economic issues, women of
all section had similar opinion but on social issues as inter-caster, inter-community
relationship women widely supported legal ban on religious conversion and ban on inter-
caste/interreligious marriages. The author points out; education here plays an important factor
for the same. Pointing out the divide on other issue i.e. reservation, the author points out
graduate and urban women did not support both legal ban on inter-caste/interreligious
marriages and reservation whereas women of lower caste such as Muslim women, Dalits etc.
were in favour of both.
Towards the end the author points out the conclusion drawn from the studies and points out
the fact that gender act as an independent variable in political participation but political
opinion may be affected due to various factors like social location, resources available and a
combination of all the other factors.