Banking on women's vote for electoral wins

Recent election trends suggest that Indian politicians now see women as a potential vote bank and tailor manifestoes to win their support

- Shashi Shekhar

Do you belong to that group of people who feel that our politicians are seldom concerned with public welfare and are not investing enough attention to uplift the masses? Do you feel that during the elections they cynically create a wedge in the society and abandon the electorate once they win?

To answer these questions, let me take you back to 2023. The state government in Madhya Pradesh was facing an extreme anti-incumbency. In such an adverse scenario, then chief minister (CM) Shivraj Singh Chauhan suddenly came up with Ladli Behna Yojana. The scheme turned the tide in his favour, and the incumbent CM romped home with a landslide victory. It is another matter that the Bharatiya Janata Party replaced him in Bhopal with a new leadership. Similarly, in Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka, the Congress won assembly elections riding on schemes specially designed for women's welfare.

Clearly, welfare schemes, especially for women, are becoming a sure-shot way to retain or regain power.