Parsa Venkateshwar Rao, Junior, in DNA:
“The policy of quotas and reservations in India does not promote the right to equality as much as it enhances the power of the State to do social good, which has been expanding continuously for 60 years because it has been felt by political parties that the State must do certain things.
“That is why reservations for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes and Other Backward Classes is a gesture of state benevolence in the guise of fulfilling social commitments which have not resulted in equality but only sharpened the politics of identity.
“Women’s reservation bill too is supposed to promote gender equality but what it really does is create yet another special interest. And society is turned into a bureau of cubbyholes. And the power of the State is increased yet again.
“Women will remain beholden to parties and their agendas. The argument that a women’s constituency will force the political parties and the state to pay attention to women’s issues is not convincing because women do not constitute a homogenous segment. There are as many differences among women as there are in society.”
Read the full article: Reservations and the idea of equality
churumuri 
Though seats will be reserved for women (at present in local bodies in Karnataka, 33 1/3 per cent seats are reserved for women), when it comes to giving tickets they have to be at the mercy of men in their political outfit. The allotment of party tickets too should be left to the women’s wing of the political parties, not to the men bossing over the party affairs.
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I wonder when the OBC or muslims reservations will be passed? I could either think of getting an OBC certificate or i could convert to islam. What about christian reservations? Damn it, so many opportunities. So many options to choose from. This govt. rocks. Congress forever. Till death, baby. Congress is truly secular and im secular with them. I don’t know what secularism means but as long as it opposes the brutal BJP and the supa dupa secret underground organization of evil brahmins, the RSS, i do not need to know what secularism means. Reservations rulz.
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The author has no solutions in the original article. It is unclear from what he says how the state’s power has increased at the cost of equality. He hasn’t clarified how reservations have been detrimental to those who have benefited from them. And why women and the country will not benefit from if this becomes a law.
At least Lalu and the others have a clear idea – they do not want a change in the status quo.
Article is no better than the comments we leave on this forum. No food for thought here can be safely ignored.
Lets wait for the real drama in the Lok Sabha.
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In her interview on TV, NDTV, Sonia Gandi claims that the congress party and herself are the only people responsible for the bill to clear the first hurdle, it is not true, for the first time the opposition have joined the ruling party to pass a bill. Due credit should be given where it is due to BJP & its allies and CPI!
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i agree with parsa, but the irony is stark.
the indian state seems to be powerless — certainly powerless in controlling any of the chaos of our parliament.
i spent (wasted?) more than an hour watching the “debate” in the rajya sabha preceding the vote on the women’s reservation bill:
http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Video/87352/42/Videos/RS+passes+Women's+Quota+Bill.html
i almost have tears in my eyes as i type this.
there really was no debate on such an important bill. it was mostly cacophony. even i, a former journalist who covered brihanmumbai municipal corporation sessions, am shocked by highly, highly disgraceful conduct by the “honorable members” of india’s august upper house.
as my late grandfather would say gleefully — every time a nijalingappa or bangarappa disgraced karnataka — perhaps sir winston churchill was right.
perhaps we indians indeed are unable to rule ourselves. we cannot even have a civilized debate — not even when live television is rolling in the august “upper house” of our grand parliament.
i was eager to listen to the leader of opposition arun jaitley’s comments. mr. jaitley, the good lawyer, hardly got a chance to have a say before the bill was passed — by voice vote!
a major bill passed without debate, with voice vote! and we are supposed to be a democracy! what sort of cruel joke is this?
every political party seems to have packed the rajya sabha with unworthy shouters whom i would cringe to ever invite to my home — not even for ugadi.
clearly, our rajya sabha is a shame. indian democracy is a shame. and i am tempted to say — long live sir winston.
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Reservations are anti-democratic. And on what basis is this 30% arrived at. It should have been 50% right. This is all bogus.
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reservation is an endemic disease in india n recent past its spread so rapidly n is been finding new spheres every time. n now its women’s bill.. frankly speaking now i feel that some day there may be a cure for AIDS but for this disease of reservation never…. the blacks of US are better than INDIANS u know y because even they in past n still are suffering discrimination but never demand for reservations that the of self respect at its greatest form..shame on we INDIANS..
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n i totally agree wid mr.Rao that this is a populist bill n nothing more. INDIA has seen women occupying cm post the top politcal post of state from kashmir in north to tamil nadu in south n bihar in east to rajasthan in west.. y that INDIRA GANDHI was pm for nearly 17 years.so where the question of male depriving female arises at this political level.but it should not be forgotten that there is deprivation at grass root level whose upliftment finds no place in the heart of these seekers of reservation.
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alas!finally this piad a way to or created a ground for more n more no. of women to get criminalised like there male counter part. our respected female folk was relatively immune to it but soon will get highly infected. with this bill only gender of contestant changes not voter neither the type of politics. now even women will be indulged in money n muscle power to get voted to power.we are pushing our mothers n sisters into criminal world.now decriminalisation of politics covers larger sphere
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Today Lalu is backing down coz madam has decided to go slow on Nitish govt challenging Lalu’s acquittal in teh fodder scam. Where is the article on that dear churumuri? Can you also dig up what kind of ball twister madam has against Mulayam?
PS: Funny thing yesterday evening.. all the major channels were screaming exclusive interview with madam. She was there on all the channels. Monkeys can run a news channel lot better.
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Toon on the same.. http://caricaturehome.blogspot.com/2010/03/women-empowerment-bill.html
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What is the real unstated reason behind the opposition of the Yadavs to the Bill ? Is it sheer unwillingness to give up male dominance or the fear of not being able to find enough women to put up as candidates ? Or the possibility that in the aggregate fewer OBC’s will get elected ?
I would like to have a perspective.
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its quite obvious that lalu fears of losing even the single digit representation he has in the lower house…these yadav’s fear is to such an extent that they can completely be uprooted politically with this bill as there wives betis n bahus dont stand chance even if they think of proxy politics.. it is quite evident when mulayum’s bahu tasted a massive defeat in by elections against mr. babbar.. they fear that wat if bigger parties field famous or celeb females against there family females they wil lose
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so this quota within quota for minorities is simply a lame excuse to hide their true intension or fear … they know it very wel if bigger parties bend to their demands n govt introduces such a correction of qouta witin quota which is constitutionally not feasible will surely get striked off as void by supreme court if put to judicial review hence one or the other way sooner or later but before 2014 elections they want to cancel the bill n serve their intensions n relief from fear..
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but whatever it may be with these small parties this bill is no right n i feel it will hardly serve the purpose of women empowerment in true n practical sense as boasted by madams of 3 greater parties… it rather has more negatives than positives.. wat indira gandhi couldnt in her log tenure of 17 yrs as PM wat these female neo MPs will do with hardly a single tenure… such a paradox isnt it?…….
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when these big parties show such unity n strong political will setting aside their differnces in bringing up a bill which is politically beneficial to them in future y cant they do this for other social cause ….. a chief minister who supports this bill against his party lines had abstained from important meeting with home minister regarding internal security…. why is not intertnal security a burning threat to our society? or might be its not not profitable in regard to his political gains
this bill when beomes true in 2014 india will assume 18th position in the world wid regard to political empowerment of women.so my question is when will these so called nation builders n madams of various parties work wid similar zeal to uplift india in regard to poverty food security nutrition literacy health over all hdi n many more which need much larger attention than women’s bill n in all these we rank inferior to many of LDCs…as u think of empowering women in 15 years can
u do the same wid these?
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In theory the objective of this bill is great. However, the details of its implementation have not been well thought out. If a policy of rotation of seats is followed then MPs or MLAs might lose interest in nurturing their constituencies. Parties would also face a dilemma if MPs who are winnable or are influential cannot be accomodated because of the rotation of seats. Parties would be limited in their choice of whom to field.
Knowing that their seats would be up for rotation and they might not get another chance to be elected could cause many of these candidates to lose interest in their activities.
Specifying a fixed percentage of woman candidates to field for every party could have been a slightly better option as it provides both flexibility and a larger pool of talent to choose from for the parties.
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