Crossing the Sacred Line: Women’s Search for Political Power

"Few women participate in politics, fewer still make it to any significant position in the party or government and finally only very few are committed to and closely identify with women’s issues and the women’s movement. Nor have political parties taken up these questions, though limitations to participation faced by groups have been taken up in the context of the scheduled castes and tribes. The tendency has been towards conformity and compromise for reasons of political expediency and consolidation of vote banks. Yet the growing strength of the women’s movement has given women some strength within their parties, and has also made the parties senstitive to women’s issues. This book looks at these issues in the context of the political parties–their history and ideologies, political committments (manifesto and policy), organizational structure, mode of functioning and the place of women’s organizations within the party. The authors conclude that the time has come, both due to the growth of the women’s movement and the demand for reservations for political parties to confront these questions, and to find answers to them."