Fading Naari Shakti: BJP's Decreasing Female Representation in UP Polls

The Congress party has declared 17 candidates for the state, but just one of them is a woman, suggesting that the party has abandoned the slogan "Mahila Hoon, Lad Sakti Hoon." 

Prime Minister Modi poses with female lawmakers following the introduction of the 'Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam'. (Photo: File)

New Delhi: In the latest Uttar Pradesh elections of 2024, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fallen short of its pledge to enhance female representation in the Lok Sabha. Despite the enactment of a law by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration aimed at ensuring that 33% of directly elected members to Parliament and State Legislatures are women, the BJP has nominated fewer female candidates compared to the previous two elections in 2014 and 2019.

The Constitution (128th Amendment) Bill of 2023, dubbed the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam by Modi, was introduced with the intention of appealing to female voters. This legislation also reserves one-third of the seats within the 33% quota for women belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. However, the enforcement of this law depends on the publication of a new census and subsequent delimitation processes, leading to uncertainty about its implementation timeline, with some experts suggesting it may not be feasible until the 2029 Lok Sabha election or later.

Although political parties like the BJP have no legal obligation to increase female representation, they could have used this election to demonstrate their commitment to promoting women's participation in public affairs. Despite Modi's rallies celebrating Nari Shakti and the BJP's portrayal of the law as a significant step towards women's empowerment, the party's actions have not aligned with its rhetoric.

In Uttar Pradesh, the BJP has nominated fewer women candidates compared to previous elections. Out of 79 candidates announced by the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), only eight are women. This marks a decline from the 11 women candidates fielded by the BJP alliance in both 2014 and 2019. Moreover, the BJP replaced several incumbent female MPs with male candidates for the 2024 elections, resulting in a net decrease in female representation.

Conversely, the party's main rival, the Samajwadi Party (SP), has nominated more women candidates, with 10 out of their total nominations. Including the Congress' sole female candidate, the count reaches 11 within the broader INDIA bloc. The Congress, which championed the 'Mahila Hoon, Lad Sakti Hoon' slogan during the 2022 UP Assembly elections with 40% female candidates, has significantly reduced its female representation. Out of 17 candidates declared by the party, only one is a woman.

Notably, many female candidates from both major blocs, NDA and INDIA, come from politically influential backgrounds or families, with several being spouses or daughters of current or former politicians.

In summary, despite the rhetoric surrounding women's empowerment, the representation of women in Uttar Pradesh's 2024 elections does not reflect the promised commitment to gender parity in politics.