Gender bias in Indian elections

Parties field fewer women because voters lack faith in women leaders’ abilities — a vicious cycle we need to break

Male preserve That's what Indian elections are all about NISSAR AHMAD | Photo Credit: NISSAR AHMAD

By Chandan K Jha & Sudipta Sarangi

Political parties and voters are equally to blame for the low representation of women in Parliament. Throughout history, women have fought all kinds of odds to achieve success in a male-dominated political world. From Cleopatra to Catherine the Great, Queen Victoria to Rani Lakshmi Bai and modern leaders — Margaret Thatcher, Angela Merkel, Hillary Clinton, Sheikh Hasina and Aung San Suu Kyi — the list is impressive.

Despite this, women are still under-represented in parliaments around the world. Even today they constitute less than a fourth of the world’s lawmakers.

One factor driving this is a bias on the part of political parties, the notion that women candidates cannot be relied on to win elections. They are believed to lack access to the political networks and resources that men have.