Glass ceiling effect in politics: The need for reform

Women hold a measly 14 per cent seats in Parliament, making India among the lowest 44 countries globally

What is the marker of an upstanding and progressive society? It is in the equality index, availability of opportunities for all and the graph of the growth of individuals or entities. Society and its values can always be judged by how it treats women, minorities and the underprivileged. For a society to grow, its women and minorities must rise and experience an elevation in their standing.

The glass ceiling is an unsaid barrier that doesn't let individuals rise in a particular setting. It is generally used to describe the trouble women and minorities face in climbing the ranks in any field of work. It is a kind of discrimination in plain terms.

In India, the equality gap between men and women in politics is immense. While there are quite a few women workers in the different parties, there are only a few at its face. Indira Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee, Shiela Dikshit, Mayawati, Jayalalitha and Sushma Swaraj have wielded power. However, most Indian women politicians still struggle to get a seat at the table and be a changemaker.

Glass ceiling effect in politics

According to the World Bank, the proportion of seats held by women in the Indian national parliament in 2021 was a measly 14 per cent, while the highest value was 61 per cent in Rwanda. India is among the lowest 44 countries globally, including North African and war-torn nations like Yemen and Syria.

The Women's Reservation Bill, first introduced in 1996, was meant to reserve a third of seats for women in the 543-member Lok Sabha. However, the move has been pending for more than two decades.

While there has been an increase in the number of women turning out to vote, there remains a lack of women leaders who they can vote for.

It is not to say that things haven't improved over the years. When Indira Gandhi served as the prime minister, she was a lone wolf, while Mamata Banerjee, Jayalalitha, Sushma Swaraj and Mayawati co-existed in the 21st century.

Why we need more women in politics

According to the Economic Survey released in January this year, the number of females per 1000 males in India was 1020 in 2019-21. This means India has more women than men currently, but the same does not reflect in the country's parliament.

The answer to why we need to have more women in politics is simple: For a country whose sex ratio is tilted towards women, it cannot cater to the majority of its population if the ratio in Parliament is not the same.

Democracy stands on equity and human rights, and to fulfil those cornerstones, a healthy female representation in politics is a must.

More women in Parliament would mean more women-centric issues could be raised. For a country like India, where women's safety is one of the biggest issues, perhaps more attention and empathy at the top would have an enormous impact.

For example, in parliaments or during the process of policy-making, there are not enough conversations about menstrual health. There is a dire need for better solutions like tampons and menstrual cups to reach rural areas, too, but the lack of information and access is a stark contrast to the urban population. Even in a slum area of Delhi, Sangam Vihar, families still use cloth.

For centuries, women had been discriminated against, but as society developed, women could get to the table and raise their voices against the atrocities they faced. A broad representation of women in politics would allow the reformation of discriminatory laws against the gender too.

World over, women have been fighting against abortion laws in a few countries, and such conversations only get prominence when there are enough women to talk about it.

Barriers to women's participation

The biggest hurdle for women in politics is the gender stereotypes in society and a discriminatory attitude in general. Even though India has had a few prominent female political leaders, most have not been put on the kind of pedestals that males in similar roles have enjoyed.

Even in the 21st century, politics is still considered dirty. The norms and perceptions of our society still want women to be saints, and saints don't tread muddy paths. Hence, politics is not considered the right choice of work for females.

The male-dominated arena of politics is still not fully ready to open its arms for women to take over, and the mindset alteration in the society is yet to fully mature.

In India, the scales of household jobs are still tilted toward women, and hence, the disproportionate setting does not enable women to fully take over in their professional space.

Indian politics regularly sees violence during polls, which is not conducive to women's participation and hence, it becomes a significant factor of discouragement.

How to create an inclusive political space led by women

The first step towards encouraging more women to join politics is to have more prominent female personalities at the top and decision-making levels in parties. A more inclusive society, in general, would see a ripple effect in politics, where women would be able to take centre stage.

Education and not just literacy would go a long way in creating an inclusive political space. At the moment, an institutional degree does not hold weightage in politics, but education allows individuals to be more broad-minded, secure, motivated, respectful and empathetic. For women

to feel safe in a political environment, their co-workers must be sensitive, and there has to be a level of respect at all times. Educated individuals would perhaps bring that to the table.

To encourage inclusivity, women must have easy access to public infrastructure and facilities. There has to be a clearly-defined pathway from entering a political party to making it to the top. For the upward movement in a political party to be seamless, clear directives

and requirements have to be laid down to make it to the helm, and the process must be transparent.

As a society if we want to see progress, we need to wipe out our inherent discrimination. When we start to see more women in leadership roles, males are bound to start seeing them as equals, which in turn will make our society a more equal, respectable and habitable one.

(Parimal Maya Sudhakar is Head of the School, MIT School of Government, MIT World Peace University, Pune)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.