Women constitute more than 50 per cent of Kerala’s population, and around 70 per cent of them are voters. But their representation in the Assembly is minimal, with less than five members at a time. A group of women activists has decided to protest against this injustice in a unique manner. The online campaign, which is already a big hit, urges the public to vote for NOTA wherever women candidates are not in the fray.
“Going by the lists of candidates published by various parties for the forthcoming polls, there are very few women candidates. Also, in most cases, the seats offered to women are those in which the respective parties do not have great expectations of winning,” says Divya Diwakaran, an activist who spearheads the campaign.
Interestingly, the motley crowd of activists from across the State do not work under any particular banner. Instead, they will campaign for women candidates. “Successive governments in the State have been taking women for granted, and hence, they never paid attention to the Women’s Reservation Bill, though it is a right more than reservation. It is high time women protested against this injustice,” she adds.
The slogan of the campaign is: “If you are not ready to field 50 per cent women candidates, we are not ready to vote. Our vote is for NOTA.” The campaign has already received positive response from various quarters, with scriptwriter Deedi Damodaran and activists including M. Sulfath, N.V. Vinaya and Sudha Manjeri expressing support. The group plans to take out rallies as part of the campaign in Thrissur district.
NOTA (None of the above) is an option provided by the Election Commission of India for voters to express the option on the voting machine through a symbol that consists of a black cross on the ballot sheet.
