Objective: To educate civil society for it to better understand the larger factors that enable or hamper the emergence of women’s agenda, and the means by which they inspire and influence larger processes of social change.

Background: It is widely recognized that a gender sensitive and rights based women’s movement as we see today, is an outcome of a long struggle by several women leaders during the pre and post independence era. However, women’s concerns and ideas were not explicitly incorporated under any form of struggle, neither under British regime nor during Independence. This was not because women were not part of the movement but because at the policy / decision level the ‘gender’ factor was not dominant. The women leaders who participated in social reforms and political movements during the early 1940s were satisfied with legal reforms and constitutional changes. Few of the eminent women were invited by the government to contribute to the planning process. A sub-committee on women called Women’s Role in Planned Economy (WPRE), was established in 1939 to examine and make recommendations on women’s role in the planned economy. A welfarist approach was adopted to address women’s concerns and it was felt that needs and voices of large sections of women were not addressed.

It is at this point women realized that neither they need the control of women’s organizations nor do they want to speak in a singular voice. They thought that the prevailing political system reduced the role of women. It was at this juncture that two different political ideologies came closer to one another to give rise to a more ‘feministic agenda’ that was earlier unheard of. Women leaders following Gandhian and the Leftist philosophy realized that however progressive their mutual ideologies were, it had not equipped them to fight ‘patriarchy’. The leftist women formed exclusive women’s organization that would fight for their rights while Gandhian women explored ways within the existing system to reach the masses. It is then that these women from different political back grounds started participating in major political issues with a pro - women perspective. In 1974, concerns pertaining to women’s status and rights came into forefront when the first ever State sponsored report ‘Towards Equality’ was published. The report became the foundation for women's movement, which today is vigorous and healthy.

In 1992, the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments, mandating one-third reservation of seats for women in local government, and the proposal to extend this provision to the Parliamentary level, became a turning point in the struggle for women’s empowerment. This is one of the most visible elements of a strategy that aims to promote gender equality. The experience of women’s global struggles shows that the presence of a ‘critical mass’ of women within mainstream structures and institutions can trigger the process of challenging and changing gender hierarchies within these structures and institutions, as well as energise and inspire larger processes of social change.

Some of the common observations across country studies noted that an interface among elected women officials, government officers and poor people is an effective means of improving the delivery of public sector resources to the poorest and most disadvantaged, particularly women. Further, when elected women representatives link the needs of their constituents with the resources of government and other public sector organizations, local government is more transparent & effective. Evidence also points that building the capacity of female elected officials enhances the effectiveness of local government and develops the social capital of the women themselves.

In India, while there are several studies in this field, particularly on women’s presence within panchayati raj institutions, these have tended to focus on the role of individual women leaders. Moreover, the focus is on the women leader in formal positions. However there are very few studies that have analyzed the dynamics of the emergence of women leaders in informal positions. Findings suggest that women associated with the informal structures are more capable in voicing women concerns than that of pradhans or ward members.