an oath not to allow the men from our households or village to interfere in our
work. We resolved not to let our husbands enter our allotted cabins and that
we would handle the affairs of the village on our own.
I understood the politics of exclusion. I knew exactly how the earlier leaders
had restricted power and participation amongst themselves. Meetings were
never held regularly, notices were not put up, and if they were there was no
time to prepare for them. I demanded that the agenda for the monthly meeting
be declared a week in advance, that the meetings be held in the Panchayat
Office as per schedule and that women be allowed to participate in these
meetings. My active participation after the elections, invited many problems
for me also from the orthodox within the Muslim community. However, my
husband stood by me. From my earlier trainings, I knew exactly which were
the issues that I ought to address. I undertook the work on road- construction,
sanitation, and installed a water pipeline from a nearby pond. I forced a new
survey for the distribution of BPL once I realized that two of the beneficiaries
on the old list actually belonged to affluent families.
I am aware of the huge empowering abilities of affirmative action like
reservation for women since I have lived it and can see the transformations
within myself. I have also realized that governance is a big responsibility that
can be ably handled by women with proper training and a little exposure.
I believe that since a woman is a mother as well, it is in her character to be
selfless and work for the benefits of others, a quality that men usually lack.
I know my job is not done yet and I am committed to the idea of developing
my village. However, my idea of development is a little different from how
it is conventionally viewed. For me true development stands for a process
that debilitates all institutions and mechanisms of exploitation, apart from the
proper implementation of policies and Schemes. I know that my words have
more meaning today and my voice has a greater importance. However, there
remains an unfulfilled task, that of taking governance to every woman and in
turn getting women who are truly empowered and capable of governance into
power. Until that is achieved, I will continue to fight.