One may safely posit that after the demise of Mrs Indira Gandhi, India didn’t see much of a recognisable growth in the participation of female candidates in the Indian electoral system. Despite the constant emphasis on the needs and ways to usher women empowerment and employment opportunities for Indian women, there still remained a stark difference. But through the last few decades, we have witnessed a remarkable rise in the number of female politicians in India. There is a new band of feisty, strong, and confident women politicians in India making waves everywhere.
Let’s take a look at this welcome change and understand the history of female politicians in India and their immense contributions towards the empowerment and emancipation of Indian women.
First women politicians in India
Before the arrival of Mrs Indira Gandhi at the political scene, her predecessors had already set the tone for Indian women. Notable names to be cited in this regard would be Sarojini Naidu and Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit.
A prominent freedom fighter, Sarojini Naidu had served as the President of the Indian National Congress. Also a poet, she was the first woman governor of the Republic of India. She had actively fought for women’s right to vote and founded the Women's Indian Association (WIA).
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Indian politician-turned-diplomat and later Governor of Maharashtra, became the 8th President of the United Nations General Assembly. One of the earliest names, right after independence, is Sucheta Kriplani. A freedom fighter, Sucheta Kriplani became India's first woman Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh.
Current powerful female politicians in India
Today the Indian political scene is witnessing an influx of more and more women at every level. Even though there is a long way to go, there are some prominent names of female political leaders in India that we are proud to acknowledge.
The country, in the year 2007, got its first female President in Pratibha Patil - a long-overdue event indeed. A doyen in politics, she has also served as the Governor of Rajasthan.
Sushma Swaraj - A former Supreme Court lawyer, Sushma Swaraj, served as the Minister of External Affairs of India from 2014 to 2019. Daughter of Hardev Sharma, a prominent leader of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh leader, Sushma Swaraj had multiple achievements in her political career that spanned over 40 years - Haryana’s youngest cabinet minister at 25 in the year 1977, first woman chief minister of Delhi in the year 1998, leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha from 2009 to 2014, so on and so forth. She was a powerful Hindi orator with a flair for witty expressions articulated during Parliamentary sessions.
Mayawati - The former Prime Minister of India, P. V. Narasimha Rao, had once referred to her as the 'miracle of democracy', Mayawati served as the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh for four terms. Well-known for her contribution towards improving the condition of Dalits and Other Backward Classes in India, Mayawati is credited to have reinstituted efficiency in administration and everyday governance. Her government worked tirelessly towards development in Uttar Pradesh - the Yamuna Expressway, first solar plant, financial assistance for the girl child, Indian Grand Prix 2011, to name a few. Mayawati not only brought back law & order but also reduced corruption, thereby leading the state to achieve a 17% GDP growth rate.
Jayalalitha - Jayaram Jayalalithaa, popularly known as Amma, had served as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for five terms, i.e., from 1991 to 2016. As a first in the country, she had established 57 women-run police stations during her tenure in the state and had reserved a 30% quota for women in law enforcement. Also, the general secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), Jayalalithaa had instituted women-led independent self-help groups across the length and breadth of Tamil Nadu. A celebrated South Indian actress of the mid-1960s, she had also penned four successful literary novels.
Sheila Dikshit - Sheila Dikshit, the former Chief Minister of Delhi from 1998 to 2013, was the longest-serving female chief minister in the history of Indian polity. She had led the Congress party thrice to three consecutive electoral victories in Delhi. A doyenne of the Congress party, she is credited as the architect of modern-day Delhi. Among her other achievements, Sheila Dikshit had represented the country at the United Nations Commission on Status of Women from 1984 to 1989. She had also served as the governor of Kerala briefly in 2014.
Mamata Banerjee - Mamata Banerjee is the first female and current Chief Minister of West Bengal since 2011. After splintering off from the Congress party in 1998, she went on to form her political party called 'Trinamool Congress'. Lovingly referred to as 'Didi', her party eventually won the West Bengal legislative assembly election of 2011, thereby making the history of putting an end to a democratically elected and longest-serving Communist party-led government in the world. Mamata Banerjee is also the first female politician to have served as the Minister of Railways twice. Throughout her political career, she has maintained an austere lifestyle avoiding luxuries of all sorts.
In the year 2019, Nirmala Sitharaman became India’s first female Finance Minister. With the COVID-19 pandemic and rounds of lockdowns across the country, she faced the significant challenge of reviving the country’s economy after experiencing an economically all-time low performance. In her budget presentation, she announced a package of Rs 1.70 lakh crore as relief to pull the country out of the financial quagmire.
Another name to reckon with is KK Shailaja, the Minister of Health and Social Justice in Kerala. She demonstrated exemplary determination and pluck and managed India’s healthcare crisis head-on during the COVID-19 pandemic. Her brand of leadership has been widely extolled not only within the country but has also attracted international recognition and commendation from the United Nations.
Another name to reckon with is Sonia Gandhi. Despite not having been elected to any position of power in the Indian government, she is one of the most powerful women in the world, listed by Forbes as the 9th most powerful woman in the year 2013. world. Personifying strength and moral fibre, Sonia Gandhi played a key role behind the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and Right to Information Act, while extending her support for the LGBTQIA+ community by opposing section 377.
An up-and-coming politician, who has taken the political scene by storm is Mahua Moitra. An ex-investment banker of JPMorgan Chase, she became a member of parliament after winning from her constituency in West Bengal at the 17th Lok Sabha in the year 2019 elections. Her strength lies in her knowledge of the Indian economy as well as her strong personality that refuses to buckle under any degree of subjugation or condescension.
Female politicians to have lived in India
But when we talk about female politicians in India, one certainly cannot ignore the contributions from other female political leaders who have lived and worked for the people of India. The first and foremost name is obviously Annie Besant. A writer, champion of liberal thinking, secularism and women's rights, she was a supporter of India’s demand for self-rule during the British Raj. It is no wonder that she became the very first woman to have presided over Indian National Congress, which made her the first woman to have led the biggest political party in pre-independent India.
Madame Bhikaji Cama, also known as the 'Mother of Indian Revolution' is another important name. She understood the plight of suppressed Indians and decided to promote the cause on an international stage. She was exiled by the British-Indian government and Britain itself for her revolutionary principles and activities. She was the very first person to have hoisted the Indian flag on foreign soil.
Madeleine Slade, popularly known as Miraben, accompanied Mahatma Gandhi during his trips and became an ardent votary of India’s demand for independence from British rule. A dedicated proponent of non-violence, she would often travel with Gandhi on his international trips, including the one to London to attend the Round Table Conference in 1931.
Important historic events involving women politicians in India
Female political leaders in India through history have made considerable contributions towards the development of the country including pre-independent times. For instance, Sarojini Naidu joined the Satyagraha and the non-cooperation movements under Gandhi’s leadership. But after Gandhi’s arrest during the famous Dandi March, Gandhi appointed Sarojini to solely lead the campaign. She was also the very first female president of the Indian National Congress.
Another name to reckon with is Savitribai Phule, aka India’s first female teacher. With her indefatigable spirit, Savitribai Phule made relentless efforts to fight for women empowerment principally among the backward castes.
Fast forward to the 21st century, Chhavi Rajawat, at the age of 30, became the youngest Sarpanch in India. Despite zero political affiliations, this determined lady emerged as the chief whip of the Gram Panchayat of Soda, a village in Rajasthan.
Despite several movements and constitutional amendments, there remains room for colossal improvement. Social ills like female infanticide, dowry, child marriage, inequality in education, pay disparity, etc., thrive through the abominable forces of ignorance, patriarchy, and poverty. While on one hand, we need to provide necessary mental and infrastructural support to women, on the other, we also need to sensitize Indian men towards women’s causes, to help the entire Indian demography reach its full potential.
FAQ -
· Mamata Banerjee terminated 34-years of Left rule in West Bengal and became the first female Chief Minister of the state.
· Jayalalithaa served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
· Sushma Swaraj was the only second woman to have served as the Minister of External Affairs of India after Indira Gandhi
· Brinda Karat was the very first woman to have been inducted into the CPI(M) Politburo.