- By Vivek Raj
- Wed, 03 Apr 2024 01:06 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Delhi, the national capital of India, has a nuanced history of female representation in Lok Sabha elections spanning over 68 years since 1951. In this period, only nine women have been elected to the Lok Sabha from Delhi. Notable names include Sucheta Kripalani, Sushma Swaraj, Meira Kumar, Krishna Tirath, and Meenakshi Lekhi, among others.
The data reveals a consistent trend of limited female representation in Delhi's Lok Sabha elections. The maximum number of women elected in a single poll was two, which occurred only thrice in 1971, 1996, and 1998. Moreover, no woman has been elected more than twice during this period.
Delhi's journey in the Lok Sabha elections began in 1951 when Sucheta Kripalani was elected from the New Delhi constituency, a seat she retained in the next election of 1957. However, the following two Lok Sabha elections saw no women elected from the city.
The trend of underrepresentation persisted even as the number of Lok Sabha seats in Delhi increased to seven in 1967. Out of approximately 100 candidates elected in the 14 Lok Sabha elections since 1967, only 12 were women.
In 1971, Delhi elected two women to the Lok Sabha: Mukul Banerjee from New Delhi constituency and Subhadra Joshi from the Chandni Chowk constituency. However, the next two elections in 1977 and 1980 did not see any women being elected from Delhi.
Similarly, in the 1989 and 1991 elections, no women were elected to represent Delhi in the Lok Sabha. In 1984, Sundarwati Nawal Prabhakar emerged victorious from the Karol Bagh constituency, becoming the sole woman MP from Delhi that year.
The elections of 1996 and 1998 witnessed the election of two women MPs from Delhi: Sushma Swaraj from the South Delhi constituency representing BJP and Meira Kumar from the Karol Bagh constituency representing Congress. In 1999, Anita Arya from the BJP secured victory in the Karol Bagh constituency.
In 2004 and 2009, Krishna Tirath from Congress was the sole female MP representing Delhi. However, in the 2014 and 2019 elections, Meenakshi Lekhi from BJP became the sole woman MP from Delhi.
Constituency-wise, the New Delhi seat reflects higher numbers as compared to others, having elected five women, followed by Karol Bagh with four women representatives. South and North West Delhi have each elected women twice.
The political landscape in Delhi has primarily been dominated by Congress and BJP in terms of female MPs. While six women were elected as Congress candidates, three were elected as BJP candidates. Sucheta Kripalani initially contested as a Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party candidate before affiliating with Congress.
ALSO READ: Forbes Richest List 2024: Mukesh Ambani Tops Asia, Check List Of Top 10 Richest Person In India
Ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha polls scheduled for May 25, political parties have started finalising their candidates. While BJP has included two women candidates in its list, Bansuri Swaraj from New Delhi and Kamaljeet Sehrawat from West Delhi. AAP, in alliance with Congress, has not nominated any women candidates. Congress, contesting three seats, is yet to announce its candidates.
In Delhi, the total number of voters stands at 1.47 crore, with women constituting approximately 67.30 lakh of the electorate.