Ahmedabad:
Only 16 women candidates have been fielded by the ruling BJP and opposition Congress for phase one of the Gujarat Assembly polls despite both the parties backing the Women's Reservation Bill that provides 33 percent reservation.
While the BJP has fielded 11 women candidates, the Congress has named just five candidates for the 87 assembly seats that will go to polls on December 13 across Saurashtra, South Gujarat and four seats in western Ahmedabad district.
The Gujarat Parivartan Party (GPP), a new entrant into the political battlefield this year, headed by former Chief Minister Keshubhai Patel, has fielded only one woman candidate.
Explaining the rationale behind very few women taking to politics, Associate Professor, Department of Sociology, Gujarat University, Gaurang Jani said,"Political awareness is less among women from rural areas and in urban areas, only the successful women candidates are repeated."
According to Mr Jani, the state government, on its part, has not undertaken measures to empower women and create educational awareness about political participation. Hence, Gujarat lags behind on key social indicators like female foeticide, infant mortality rate, high malnutrition rate, among others.
Highlighting that elections have not been held in state universities for many years, Mr Jani said that student politicians are nurtured in colleges and universities.
Echoing similar views, Gujarat Mahila Federation President Ila Pathak said that women are not allowed to dabble into politics because it is considered a "taboo" to do so.
She added that male politicians are well-connected locally and in rural areas, there are not enough women candidates who can enter the fray and that are why, political parties have less number of seats for women to contest.