In the initial euphoria of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, every political outfit has staked claim to credit. These are not fictional claims, for many have devolved political power to women, though insufficient.
The Indian National Congress (INC) passed the 73 and 74 Amendment Bills and many parties across states increased reservations in local governments from 33 percent to 50 percent. Further, the Janata Dal, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the INC have tabled the Women's Reservation Bill in its prior avatars.
However, they have not devolved political power without the iron hand of law upon them – except for the Trinamool Congress (TMC), the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the Janata Dal United (JDU), who have fielded a critical mass of female candidates in multiple elections.
Still, no political party in India is gender-balanced in the rungs of its party hierarchy. They have not groomed a pipeline of female leaders but rather field women ad hoc, per want of their party chiefs. Political expediency, rather than systematic power sharing, is the goal for most.
True credit for forcing the bill allowing 33 percent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha, and the state Assemblies, should go to the women of India, who have bridged that persistent 10 percent point gap versus male voting percentages since 2009, levelling in 2019. The tired trope that women do not vote independently has been trounced repeatedly, even in the macho patriarchal Hindi belt.