Original Source: http://charkha.org/newsletter/wileader.html
Researcher- Hansa Rochlani
In Jammu and Kashmir where women have been worst victims of 17 years of insurgency, over 1400 dead, the women participation in political process has been a rarity and almost negligible.
In recent times, some women indeed have entered political theatre - mainstream as well as separatist, though it has been a slow and steady process.
The state, which till the year 2004 has had sent only two women to Indian Parliament, some young names like Mehbooba Mufti, Sakina Itoo, Kanta Andotra besides some senior names include Suman Bhagat, Zubeda Salaria and others such as Khemlata Wakhloo, Shanti Devi and Vimla Luthra have made forays into Parliament and state Assembly either through elections or through nominations.
Barring few, majority have been in political life because of family hierarchy and compulsions in particular that of the husband or father.
Though in the past few decades, political and social circumstances have restricted Kashmiri women’s political participation, 50 years ago Kashmir’s political scenario was more equitably divided between the sexes. There were women like Begum Akbar Jehan, wife of late Sheikh Abdullah, Zenaib Begum, sister of former chief minister, Ghulam Mohammad Sadiq, Zoona, a milkmaid by profession and Mahumda Ali, who played significant role in the Quit Kashmir Movement of 1946.
Begum Akbar Jehan, popularly known as Madre-Meherban was the first women from state to win any political election in state. In her maiden attempt, she won Srinagar Parliamentary seat in 1977 defeating her nearest candidate by a margin of over 100,000 votes.
As a 15-year-old daughter of a rich European businessman, Akbar Jehan in 1933 fell in love with late Sheikh Abdullah, then a schoolteacher in Kashmir. Soon after the marriage, her husband begun spending long stints in jail, and circumstances forced her into politics.
And on several occasions, she took over the reins of her husband’s party keeping the flag high to keep the anti-Maharaja movement alive in Kashmir after the arrest of her husband and other senior politicians.
She again made to Lok Sabha in 1984, however this time from Anantnag seat with a margin of over one-lakh votes. She died at age of 84 in 2002.
The second woman who made to Parliament had been Rani Parvati Devi Wangmo, queen of Buddhist land, Ladakh.
Interestingly, 1996 perhaps has been only year when maximum number of five women candidates contested state Assembly elections. Two women who made debutant entry into state Assembly were Mehbooba Mufti and Sakina Itoo.
Mehbooba Mufti’s political career initially came out of family compulsions since her only brother has shown disinterest to be political heir apparent of his father, the former Indian Home Minister, Mufti Mohd Sayeed in V.P Singh government.
About two decades back, Mehbooba had ended her marriage to a cousin and chose to be single mother to bring up her two daughters in Delhi. In 1996, she was asked to contest state elections. Her father’s Mufti Mohd Sayeed’s political career was in doldrums, he needed family support and chose his daughter, who obliged.
Mehbooba entered politics on a Congress ticket in the 1996 assembly elections. But later, she resigned and formed a regional party People’s Democratic Party (PDP), laying strong foundation for the party’s victory in 2002 state elections.
Having weathered several political and personal storms, Mehbooba (48), mother of two teenage daughters is today icon for many young Kashmiri women. She perhaps is one among few women who have individual political footing. She is also President of PDP, and changed the Kashmiris perception towards politics. After her was re-elected in 2002 in state Assembly, Mehbooba was chosen as PDP candidate for 2004 Parliament elections and she won earning the rare credit of the youngest and third women politician to achieve this ranking.
The other woman to follow the suit is Sakina Itto, the youngest of whole lot of women politicians, in her late thirties. Her political career also began out of family compulsions.
Unlike her senior counter, Mehbooba Mufti, Sakina’s tryst with politics followed a family tragedy. Militants had gunned down her father Wali Mohammad Ittoo, a former Assembly Speaker and a senior NC leader in 1994.
A green horn in politics, Ms. Ittoo in her mid twenties had to quit her medical studies mid-way to take over her father’s mission. In 1996, she too managed a maiden victory from her father’s constituency, Noorabad in Assembly elections. She also became the only woman Minister in the then Farooq Abdullah-led Government holding various positions and portfolios.
However, she lost the Assembly election in 2002, there have been several assassination attempts on her and she has had a close shave with death.
Recalling her trauma of attacks, she puts a bold face and says, “Am preparing for next elections. Every time I am attacked, it gives me new dimension of strength. “ I will continue to serve my people as long as God wishes, “she adds.
In the current 89-member state assembly, there are just three women members of whom only one, Kanta Andotra of the Congress, is an elected legislator. The two others, Khem Lata Vakhloo and Shanti Devi, are nominated members.
Kanta Andotra, too share a similar story that of her two previous counterparts. She made her political debut after her husband Choudhary Lal Singh got elected to Parliament in 2004. She filled in to contest the vacated seat of her husband to keep everything in family and she won.
Her political grooming she said begun in early days when she accompanied her husband in political meetings and further down the line, she begun addressing solo political rallies on her husband’s behalf.
“I was totally devoted mother and house wife and had no connection with politics except that I assisted my husband when he asked for my support especially to relate to women masses. Probably that stint of mine helped me and today, I am comfortable with my political role in state Assembly as well among people of my constituency.
Though she proudly gives all credit of her political career to her husband, whom she call her guru, she has clear political goals and set agenda of developmental works, she wants for people in her constituency and if one believes some male politicians, they say, she means business and knows her job very well.
The senior like Suman Bhagat who had been health minister in Mufti Mohd Sayeed government too has a similar history, it was her father-in-law who paved way for her entry into politics.
Not but least, one has to mention Asiya Andrabi, the chief of Kashmiri women separatist group, Dukhtarayan Millat (daughters of faith) despite the fact one agrees to their form of politics or not. The lady who once cherished dreams to study science outside Kashmir and had liberal thoughts over the past 17 years has been propagating separatist politics and also in moral policing. Despite her criticism, she as a single mother of a son, her husband a militant languishing in prison is spearheading her kind of politics.
Though women of the state have still long way to cover in politics, the impressive stories of these women politicians are already showing an enduring influence on common women, a sizeable numbers have made foray as municipal councilors and panches and Sarpanches.
Researcher- Hansa Rochlani
In Jammu and Kashmir where women have been worst victims of 17 years of insurgency, over 1400 dead, the women participation in political process has been a rarity and almost negligible.
In recent times, some women indeed have entered political theatre - mainstream as well as separatist, though it has been a slow and steady process.
The state, which till the year 2004 has had sent only two women to Indian Parliament, some young names like Mehbooba Mufti, Sakina Itoo, Kanta Andotra besides some senior names include Suman Bhagat, Zubeda Salaria and others such as Khemlata Wakhloo, Shanti Devi and Vimla Luthra have made forays into Parliament and state Assembly either through elections or through nominations.
Barring few, majority have been in political life because of family hierarchy and compulsions in particular that of the husband or father.
Though in the past few decades, political and social circumstances have restricted Kashmiri women’s political participation, 50 years ago Kashmir’s political scenario was more equitably divided between the sexes. There were women like Begum Akbar Jehan, wife of late Sheikh Abdullah, Zenaib Begum, sister of former chief minister, Ghulam Mohammad Sadiq, Zoona, a milkmaid by profession and Mahumda Ali, who played significant role in the Quit Kashmir Movement of 1946.
Begum Akbar Jehan, popularly known as Madre-Meherban was the first women from state to win any political election in state. In her maiden attempt, she won Srinagar Parliamentary seat in 1977 defeating her nearest candidate by a margin of over 100,000 votes.
As a 15-year-old daughter of a rich European businessman, Akbar Jehan in 1933 fell in love with late Sheikh Abdullah, then a schoolteacher in Kashmir. Soon after the marriage, her husband begun spending long stints in jail, and circumstances forced her into politics.
And on several occasions, she took over the reins of her husband’s party keeping the flag high to keep the anti-Maharaja movement alive in Kashmir after the arrest of her husband and other senior politicians.
She again made to Lok Sabha in 1984, however this time from Anantnag seat with a margin of over one-lakh votes. She died at age of 84 in 2002.
The second woman who made to Parliament had been Rani Parvati Devi Wangmo, queen of Buddhist land, Ladakh.
Interestingly, 1996 perhaps has been only year when maximum number of five women candidates contested state Assembly elections. Two women who made debutant entry into state Assembly were Mehbooba Mufti and Sakina Itoo.
Mehbooba Mufti’s political career initially came out of family compulsions since her only brother has shown disinterest to be political heir apparent of his father, the former Indian Home Minister, Mufti Mohd Sayeed in V.P Singh government.
About two decades back, Mehbooba had ended her marriage to a cousin and chose to be single mother to bring up her two daughters in Delhi. In 1996, she was asked to contest state elections. Her father’s Mufti Mohd Sayeed’s political career was in doldrums, he needed family support and chose his daughter, who obliged.
Mehbooba entered politics on a Congress ticket in the 1996 assembly elections. But later, she resigned and formed a regional party People’s Democratic Party (PDP), laying strong foundation for the party’s victory in 2002 state elections.
Having weathered several political and personal storms, Mehbooba (48), mother of two teenage daughters is today icon for many young Kashmiri women. She perhaps is one among few women who have individual political footing. She is also President of PDP, and changed the Kashmiris perception towards politics. After her was re-elected in 2002 in state Assembly, Mehbooba was chosen as PDP candidate for 2004 Parliament elections and she won earning the rare credit of the youngest and third women politician to achieve this ranking.
The other woman to follow the suit is Sakina Itto, the youngest of whole lot of women politicians, in her late thirties. Her political career also began out of family compulsions.
Unlike her senior counter, Mehbooba Mufti, Sakina’s tryst with politics followed a family tragedy. Militants had gunned down her father Wali Mohammad Ittoo, a former Assembly Speaker and a senior NC leader in 1994.
A green horn in politics, Ms. Ittoo in her mid twenties had to quit her medical studies mid-way to take over her father’s mission. In 1996, she too managed a maiden victory from her father’s constituency, Noorabad in Assembly elections. She also became the only woman Minister in the then Farooq Abdullah-led Government holding various positions and portfolios.
However, she lost the Assembly election in 2002, there have been several assassination attempts on her and she has had a close shave with death.
Recalling her trauma of attacks, she puts a bold face and says, “Am preparing for next elections. Every time I am attacked, it gives me new dimension of strength. “ I will continue to serve my people as long as God wishes, “she adds.
In the current 89-member state assembly, there are just three women members of whom only one, Kanta Andotra of the Congress, is an elected legislator. The two others, Khem Lata Vakhloo and Shanti Devi, are nominated members.
Kanta Andotra, too share a similar story that of her two previous counterparts. She made her political debut after her husband Choudhary Lal Singh got elected to Parliament in 2004. She filled in to contest the vacated seat of her husband to keep everything in family and she won.
Her political grooming she said begun in early days when she accompanied her husband in political meetings and further down the line, she begun addressing solo political rallies on her husband’s behalf.
“I was totally devoted mother and house wife and had no connection with politics except that I assisted my husband when he asked for my support especially to relate to women masses. Probably that stint of mine helped me and today, I am comfortable with my political role in state Assembly as well among people of my constituency.
Though she proudly gives all credit of her political career to her husband, whom she call her guru, she has clear political goals and set agenda of developmental works, she wants for people in her constituency and if one believes some male politicians, they say, she means business and knows her job very well.
The senior like Suman Bhagat who had been health minister in Mufti Mohd Sayeed government too has a similar history, it was her father-in-law who paved way for her entry into politics.
Not but least, one has to mention Asiya Andrabi, the chief of Kashmiri women separatist group, Dukhtarayan Millat (daughters of faith) despite the fact one agrees to their form of politics or not. The lady who once cherished dreams to study science outside Kashmir and had liberal thoughts over the past 17 years has been propagating separatist politics and also in moral policing. Despite her criticism, she as a single mother of a son, her husband a militant languishing in prison is spearheading her kind of politics.
Though women of the state have still long way to cover in politics, the impressive stories of these women politicians are already showing an enduring influence on common women, a sizeable numbers have made foray as municipal councilors and panches and Sarpanches.
No comments:
Post a Comment