Few Muslim, woman representatives
Only 22 women and 23 Muslims have been fielded by the Congress, BJP and the JD(S) combine for elections to the 224member Karnataka assembly, scheduled for May 12.
The three principal parties have together announced names of 498 candidates so far (out of the possible 672) but Muslims and women, as individual groups, do not constitute even 5%.
While the Congress has fielded 15 women and 15 Muslims out of 218 candidates, the JD(S) has propped up four women and seven Muslim candidate in its list of 126 so far. The BJP is worst off, having named just four women and no Muslim in its list of 154 candidates announced.
According to the 2011 Census, women comprise around 50% of the population while Muslims account for around 13%.
Political leaders said the prospect of victory trumps societal representation in matters concerning candidate nomination. Only 11 Muslims and six women were elected to Karnataka assembly in the 2013 polls.
“Victory was the only consideration in our mind while picking candidates,” Dinesh Gundu Rao, Congress state president said. He said the number of Muslim candidates may go up slightly as the party was yet to pick names for six constituencies – including Shanti Nagar.
HD Kumaraswamy, JD(S) leader and its chief ministerial face, similarly said the Muslimwomen representation may increase with candidates from 98 constituencies still to be picked. “We will ensure (more representation) in our second list of 98 candidates. We hope to prop up 15 candidates from each group.”
Repeated attempts to reach BJP spokespersons for a comment remained unsuccessful.
Noted writer BT Lalitha Nayak said the patriarchal structures in society are intact, and is the primary reason for the under representation of women in electoral politics. “Unfortunately, there is a feeling that women will not be able to compete against men – especially in politics,” she said. “As victory is the only criterion that matters to the political parties, this situation is unlikely to change soon.”
Nayak held “differing standards” for male and female politicians as one of the primary reasons for this perception. “For example, if a woman politician distributes liquor among her supporters in the same way as a man does, she would be boycotted even by women voters.”
While she admitted that reservation could help to an extent, she maintained that strict implementation of rules by the Election Commission would be a better solution. “This can become a level playing field for women only if the cap on political funding is strictly enforced, and criminal activity is curbed,” she said.
Qazi Arshad Ali, a former legislator, while recalling 1978 as the one electing the highest number of Muslim candidates (15to the Karnataka assembly, said the community’s under representation was largely due to two reasons. “They are spread evenly across the state with only two constituencies where they are in majority — Chamaraja and Gulbarga North.”
The second reason, he said, was the increasing competition between political parties. “When the Congress was the dominant force, it could get anybody elected. But that is no longer the case. He added that the situation would be similar for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes had it not been for the reservation. While 36 seats are reserved for the SCs, 15 are reserved for the STs in the state.
Politicians are human too, and the fact that voting in Karnataka takes place on May 12, a Saturday – considered inauspicious – and results are being declared on May 15 which is a ‘Amavasya’ (new moon day, again considered inauspicious) has most in a flap. So, not surprisingly, astrologers are in great demand to find an auspicious time for them to file nomination papers or start campaigning. Some candidates, their supporters and parties are also conducting havans and special pujas for ensuring the defeat of opponents and guaranteeing their own victory. But there are a rational few too. Satish Jharkiholi who is the sitting Congress MLA from Yamakanmaradi has declared his intention to file nomination papers during the inauspicious ‘Rahu Kalam.’ Others have openly challenged well known astrologers to accurately predict the outcome of the election and win prize money. None has taken up the challenge.
BENGALURU: CONG, BJP, JD(S) HAVE TOGETHER DECLARED CANDIDATES FOR 498 SEATS IN K’TAKA SO FAR. OF THESE, ONLY 22 ARE WOMEN & 23 MUSLIMS