Dear
Rahul Ji,
You breezed in and out of Bengaluru
warning the Chief Minister and City Ministers of serious action in case INC
losses BBMP Elections, good to know that you are talking tough and telling the Ministers
who are from Bengaluru City to win or get ready to be axed. There is no doubt
whatsoever that if all the INC MLAs and Ministers who are from Bengaluru City work
in the interest of the party, INC will get an absolute majority in BBMP
Elections.
But at what cost remains the mother of
all questions, with unnecessary and uncalled for delays in the BBMP Election
process INC lost its initial advantage to a great extent, and with the method
in which the candidates are selected raises very serious questions on the intent
and motive.
Inspired by the growing anger among
the people demanding better candidates from political parties, I decided to contest
BBMP Election, as per the process I submitted my application and a detailed two
page profile to KPCC. A look at my application and profile will only suggest that
there cannot be a better candidate than me to contest BBMP Election on an INC
ticket.
Clean, Credible & Committed, with
a good understanding of Civic Administration, vast experience in Sr Management
roles and spirited Political & Environmental Activist, I was convinced that
party will see greater merits in my application.
I was indeed very impressed when the
observers came to meet all the aspirants individually, but that did not last
long, the sham of selection stood thoroughly exposed. As observers started calling
the names of the women aspirants, the men proudly walked and took the seat,
left me wondering where the women were. So women were just the proxy for the
real candidates ‘the men’.
This story is neither strange nor
shocking, because this is how genuine women leaders are kept out of political
process. You keep talking and giving big speeches about women empowerment and
bringing women into the main stream politics, but reality is not a single woman
is given ticket on her own credentials.
The selection process violated every
single selection criteria, the women who were given tickets are neither party
workers nor active members of the party. So stop this farce called ‘selection process’
and directly ask the male leaders to nominate their female relative and give
them tickets and get over it.
What can be more appalling, even with 50%
reservation INC has not given tickets to independent women candidates/aspirants.
INC leaders choose the female relatives of male leaders to fill the 50% seats, who
will act as proxy for the male leaders and keeping civic administration within
the family.
I agree that it’s a common practise across
parties, and if you want to follow the same practise then INC and you should
not speak about ‘Women Empowerment’ anymore. And, if you really want to bring
in change then promote women leaders recognize them for ‘who they are’ and not
for ‘who they are related to’.
By giving tickets to incompetent,
unqualified proxies who are not even party members you are not only insulting women
members of the party who dared to venture into the male bastion but also making
a mockery of the Democratic process and disrespecting the voters who have
little choice but to vote for a man behind a woman.
More than being disgruntle I am disgusted
with the approach to ‘fill’ the 50% seats reserved for women with men. People
like me relate to INC Ideology, but with repeated grave mistakes and unwillingness
to make course correction, connect to Ideology will fade away sooner or later.
- Kavitha
Reddy
Just a party worker who dared to speak
the Truth