Eight parties award only 25 tickets to women candidates in Jharkhand Elections

Shankar Agrawal

Jamshedpur, October 26: In Jharkhand’s upcoming assembly elections, women have received only 25 out of 157 candidate slots from the state’s eight major political parties, representing just 16% of total tickets. This low representation comes despite recent legislation for a 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha, set to be implemented from 2029. Hopes that parties would use this election as a trial for greater female participation have not materialized, with most tickets allocated to women from political families.

As Jharkhand’s political landscape continues to sway towards female voters—women outnumber men in 31 constituencies—parties have introduced various schemes to appeal to them. The Maiyan Samman Yojana and the BJP’s Gogo-Didi scheme offer financial incentives, as does Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s Rs. 2500 monthly support plan. Yet, when it comes to granting candidacies, women’s representation remains limited, with many of these 25 women being closely related to male politicians.

The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and India Block parties awarded tickets to women as follows: BJP, 10; JMM, 4; Congress, 6; and AJSU, 2. While this reflects an increase over previous years, female candidates remain a minority. Political experts argue that higher women’s participation could strengthen democracy and reduce corruption, adding that most women running for office hail from political families, potentially sidelining grassroots candidates.

Vasavi Kido, former member of the Jharkhand Women’s Commission, stated, “Women deserve equal representation. They tend to be less corrupt, and their growing participation will reinforce democracy. We must also consider those women who advocate for change on the streets but remain politically marginalized.”