This is an expression of a solitary plain thought on women reservation. As an exercise of the privileged of Freedom of Expression and activating the past latent memory of the early days; comparatively these days are the days of women in Nagaland and laid to the needed rectifications.
As a simple form of an elaborate deductive; take Dimapur Municipal Council (DMC), the most vulnerable urban body in Nagaland and say there are twenty five elected and nominated Council members. Of these council members, three are women whose husbands are from Manipur, Assam and U.P and here the question is what an omen lies ahead for Dimapur and for Nagaland with these women and another three men member, having criss-cross blood from outside Nagas of Nagaland? For reservation there should be the strict reservation exclusive to the Nagas of Nagaland inclusive its men and women.
These days women are leading in all spheres in Nagaland. In the class rooms in schools, colleges and University extending to the exam results including toppers and the competitive exam results women are dominating. Teachers in schools, colleges and University, the doctors, engineering’s, traders, entrepreneurs, in office, in public and social gathering, in the church, in restaurants and in the queue, almost equal or women are more. On the roads cars and two wheeler driving ladies are splashing out. It is here that the lady DCs will drive the district administrations. It is here that the male population will approach the office dominate by women with a women boss with their applications saying, “Good morning Miss, May I come in”? Very soon there will be lady legislatures in the State Assembly and there will be lady Pastors in the Baptist Churches with high secular and theology academic qualification prefixing their names with Dr and Rev. In the house-hold it is the mother who holds more than 50% control much to his disliking but he lives with it because he knows she is one of the best and most beautiful women. It was in those past days the customary shyness kept herself closed in the family cocoon but now liberated to the open. The trait of her subservience can be traced long back to the days of his holding spears for her protection to the field and back. It is a dead notion favouring boys education above the girls but now it is the same love, burden, commitment and prayer to the children. There is no girls dowry and no dreaded diabolic S. It was the Sema boys who suffered the heavy loads for his dowry but once settle she was his most assets and together they tended more care to the girl child. An SOS reservation message to the Governor wouldn’t do much because he came, he saw and he conceptualised the total mighty difference customs up-land here and down there on the vast planes as per our cultures. Here, to be free and frank; the reservation bill for women is the constitutional gift to liberate the Hindu and Muslim women to be at large like our Naga women here from their rigid moral, social and religious laws. It is an arrived social noxious that women are raped and molested here and there but these are not tolerated and accomplished by the women lead.
The above preceding sentences in live action about women in all the spheres which is equal and exceeding men’s activities give proof of women empowerment is already at work in Nagaland and the same is come about through its own system approach not by reservation.
There is no definite yes or definite no to the reservation and the resultant conclusion is the accommodation of both which is formulated as these:
1. Election is a game bait with money and muscle power but in Nagaland there is the threat from the patriotic populace and it is the view that the reservation is a safe passage to bypass the threat by the modest women candidates.
2. In Nagaland there is no social, moral and religious law to discriminate the women contesting in election, it is always open contest and what is needed is the encouragement and their own will-power to step forward to brave the election showdowns like Hillary Clinton of the day.
3. There is the advantage in women reservation like the backward tribes, which is availing the merit list and the quota; the women member from reservation seat plus the women member from the open contest seats (since no restriction is in the open) raising women in the council will invite the question whether it is desirable to have more men or women?
4. Conjecturing the situational difference from district to district there is the likelihood of surfacing reluctance which may not be a soft landing pad for the authorities while sorting out the wards for women and the open contest seats; here it is best to watch how well the seat arrangement will be made away from High Court and Supreme Court and it is hope that there is no street mob but the right thing under the right circumstances.
P.Y. Vihoto, Ato Area, Niuland
