Abstract:
Women's movements for their rights started in the latter half of the 19th
century and continued till the first half of the 20th century, ultimately crystallizing to a
demand for the "right to vote'. Women in many countries had to wait long and grim
battle to get this right Radical feminists have gone beyond just the right to vote,
maintaining that the demand for right to vote came from women of the elite class to find
some room for themselves in the established power structure. There is now an emphasis
on the right to participate in the political decision-making, political participation as
public membership of Political participation also connotes activities for protecting one's
rights and duties and advancing interest through competition. Participation of women in
the political process has been very low. Their presence in the legislative and decision making
bodies is scarcely above 10 per cent except some Nordic countries. In Indian
politics, Caste is an important factor. Social scientists have been grappling with the
phenomenon of caste for a long time, but only few have appreciated that the major
instrument for maintaining the hierarchy even more than diversity is the subordination
of women. Thus, the present paper focuses on the historical perspective of political
participation of women in India in general and Karnataka particular through the
Panchayat raj Institutions and its impact on the development of Indian society. Finally,
the paper suggests the policy implications based on the Karnataka model for the overall
development of Sri Lankan society. Historical and descriptive methods of research will
be employed.
