Telangana polls: A look at success rate of female candidates in state

Out of the 127 female candidates who filed their nominations, 9 emerged victorious in the 2014 assembly elections. Representation of women went further downhill in the 2018 assembly elections, with only 6 women emerging victorious.

While the Parliament has passed the women's reservation bill, which mandates the reservation of 33 percent of seats for women in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures, the realization of the same will still take time. Its implementation is contingent on a delimitation exercise to redraw parliamentary and assembly constituencies based on a national census. The pressing need for its swift enactment becomes apparent when we analyze the candidature and success rate of women across assemblies.

Telangana is no exception, with a dismal state of female representation. Let's take a closer look.

2014 Telangana Assembly

Out of a total of 1612 candidates who filed nominations for the 2014 Telangana Assembly election, merely 8 per cent, or, 127, were women. Out of these 127 candidates, 9 emerged as winners in the 119-seat state assembly.

Women who won in the 2014 Telangana Assembly elections were:

1. Ajmera Rekha, TRS leader, won from Khanapur segment

2. Bodiga Shobha, TRS leader, won from Choppadandi

3. DK Aruna Arundhati, INC leader, won from Gadwal

4. Gogindi Sunitha, another TRS leader, won from Alair

5. Jetty Geeta, INC leader, won from Zahirabad segment

6. Konda Surekha, TRS leader, won from Warangal East

7. Kova Laxmi, TRS leader, won from Asifabad constituency

8. Madhya Reddy Gari Padma, TRS leader, won from Medak segment

9. Padmavathi Reddy Nalamada, INC leader, won from Kodad segment

2018 Telangana Assembly Elections

Representation of women went further downhill in the 2018 assembly elections, with only 6 women emerging victorious, which amounts to a 5 per cent representation in the state assembly. With respect to candidature, 136 women filed their nominations, accounting for only 8 per cent of the total 1782 nominations filed.

Women who won in the 2018 Telangana Assembly elections were:

1. Ajmera Rekha, Independent, won from Khanapur (ST reserved) assembly segment.

2. Anasuya Dansari, INC leader, won from Mulug (ST reserved) segment

3. Gongidi Suneetha, BRS leader, won from Alair constituency

4. Padma Devender Reddy M, BRS leader, won from Medak assembly segment

5. Patlolla Sabitha, INC leader, won from Maheshwaram seat

6. Rambai Alias Haripriya Banoth, INC leader, won from St reserved Yellandu assembly segment.

The state is set to undergo a high-stakes election on November 30. The counting of votes is scheduled for December 3.