Women in politics are just politicians. They are not saris, jackets, or a particular kind of laughter
Source: Dailyo
By Naghma Sahar,
After the death of veteran socialist leader George Fernandes, I had the chance to meet his companion and fellow politician, Jaya Jaitly.
We talked about her long political life and her new book A Life among the Scorpions: Memoirs of a Woman in Indian Politics.
I asked her if politics for women was still like living among the scorpions ready to sting. ‘Yes.’ This was pretty much what she said.
And then, she shared her experience.
When Jaya Jaitley used to convene meetings as Samta Party president, it would often begin with an apparently innocuous comment like, “Jayaji, you are looking very beautiful. Your sari is pretty”. This used to anger her a lot.
The point she was trying to drive home was how women politicians have always had to put in that extra effort to be taken more seriously for their intellect and skill and not just appreciated for how they look.
Jaya Jaitley has been in politics since 1977. We are in 2019 today.
Not much has changed, unfortunately.
Click here to read the full article published by Daylo on 21 February 2019.
By Naghma Sahar,
After the death of veteran socialist leader George Fernandes, I had the chance to meet his companion and fellow politician, Jaya Jaitly.
We talked about her long political life and her new book A Life among the Scorpions: Memoirs of a Woman in Indian Politics.
I asked her if politics for women was still like living among the scorpions ready to sting. ‘Yes.’ This was pretty much what she said.
And then, she shared her experience.
When Jaya Jaitley used to convene meetings as Samta Party president, it would often begin with an apparently innocuous comment like, “Jayaji, you are looking very beautiful. Your sari is pretty”. This used to anger her a lot.
The point she was trying to drive home was how women politicians have always had to put in that extra effort to be taken more seriously for their intellect and skill and not just appreciated for how they look.
Jaya Jaitley has been in politics since 1977. We are in 2019 today.
Not much has changed, unfortunately.
Click here to read the full article published by Daylo on 21 February 2019.