Priyanka's '40% ticket to women' gambit and how women fared in last 3 UP elections

Going by the history of how women candidates have fared over the last three state elections, the road ahead looks hard

Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi on Tuesday sounded the poll bugle in Uttar Pradesh and put forth the 'women's card' to help the grand old party gather momentum in the poll-pound state.

Priyanka, who has been actively participating in political issues in Uttar Pradesh lately, said that the party will field 40 per cent women candidates in the upcoming Assembly elections, setting straight the party's agenda.

While with the 'women card', Priyanka seems to have put the ruling BJP, which cannot boast of exemplary action in crime against women, and others on the backfoot, whether the card would yield her party seats or not, only time can tell. However, going by the history and how women candidates have fared over the last three state elections in Uttar Pradesh, the road ahead looks hard.

Also Read — Priyanka's 'women card' aims to create momentum for Congress in Uttar Pradesh

Despite Uttar Pradesh being the first Indian state to have a female chief minister, -- Sucheta Kriplani from 1963 to 1967 -- prospects of women in elections have been limited.

According to an IndiaSpend and Swaniti Initiative analysis of electoral data of the last three state elections in Uttar Pradesh since 2002, as voter turnout rose, more competitors stood against women candidates and fewer women won, with a growing number losing their deposits.

However, the game changed when we look at seats reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) candidates. According to the analysis, the proportion of women winning SC seats was more than double that of those winning general seats.

In 2002, women won 11 of 314 seats (3.5 per cent) for general-category candidates, and 15 of 89 seats (16.9 per cent) reserved for SCs. By 2012, women won 22 of 318 general seats (6.9 per cent) and 13 of 85 reserved seats (15.3 per cent). So, women contesting from Scheduled Caste seats had a more than double chance of winning.

Also Read — Congress sounds poll bugle in UP: 40% tickets to women, announces Priyanka Gandhi

However, one has to note that there was a larger voter turnout in general seats than reserved seats in the three elections and women had more competitors in general seats than they did in reserved seats. There were 314 general and 89 SC seats for the 2002 and 2007 Assembly elections, while in 2012 there were 318 general and 85 SC seats. The voter turnout in 2002 was 53.8 per cent, 45.95 per cent in 2007 and 59.52 per cent in 2012.

Given that very few women have been able to win seats, political parties have often used it as one of the excuses to field fewer women candidates. However, over the last few years, the echoes of women empowerment have only gotten louder. And Priyanka's frequent visits to the state to meet families of Hathras rape case victim or Unnao rape case victim have laid down the foundation for the battle -- women's safety and their empowerment -- the Congress is gearing up for to take on the BJP in the upcoming polls.

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