from the opposition party during the election. So when I became President,
he tried every trick in the book to undermine me. He spoke rudely to me,
withheld information, and worse tried to lobby against me with the other
Ward Members. My deputy President supported the Secretary in this game.
He, too, tried to antagonize and bully me, by talking down to me and making
fun of everything, I said. My gender made me especially vulnerable to their
games. On one occasion the Deputy President tried to stop me from speaking
by saying, you are a woman. Do not get ahead of yourself.
However, I am an educated and self-confident woman. This gave me the courage
to stand up to my detractors. During my campaign, I spent a lot of my time
reading about problems faced by women Presidents and Members in the local
newspapers and was determined not to let these problems get the better of
me. Using my own enterprise, I approached the local School Headmaster and
sought his support; he helped me understand my roles and responsibilities as a
President. He also provided me with information about different government
Schemes and programs that I could access for my Panchayat. This information
proved to be a useful weapon for me. I used this newfound knowledge to
challenge my adversaries. As I began implementing, development works in my
village and taking a leadership role in the Panchayat meetings, I earned the
respect of my Ward Member colleagues. Soon, my adversaries lost the support
of the Ward Members and had to give up.
Balancing family with my duties as a President was another challenge- one that
I face until today. My family pushed me in to politics and supported me in
becoming a proactive President. My husband has never interfered in my work.
Yet, they were uncomfortable with the fact that I had to travel outside the
village and tried to restrict my movements. In 2005, soon after my election, I
was asked to participate in Panchayat leadership trainings. My family refused
to let me go. I had a one-month-old daughter when I first became President
and my family did not allow me to leave my daughter and attend trainings.
Moreover, they were uncomfortable with the idea that I would be leaving my
village and traveling unescorted. Over the next few months, the local village
level functionaries of CECODECON spent a lot of time interacting with my