On Bihar’s election trail: Women voters may hold the key again, and Nitish Kumar knows it
As Bihar gears up for elections, women voters emerge as a pivotal force, influenced by cash doles and welfare schemes. Political leaders are divided on their effectiveness, but the impact on voter turnout is undeniable. Will women-centric schemes translate into electoral success?
Araria/Supaul/Madhepura: On board a local bus from Araria to Saharsa in the northeastern part of Bihar, on NH 231, Rajiv Kumar, a resident of Kishanpur village in Supaul district, says it is too early to predict the outcome of the assembly election.
As our bus crosses Raniganj, Kumar says he, however, is certain about one thing: “Mahilaen to Nitish ko hi vote denge (women will vote for Nitish Kumar for sure)," Kumar tells this reporter as the bus stopped for a break on 28 October, the day Chhath Puja celebrations ended in Bihar.
He refers to the ‘ ₹10,000 Jeevika Didi’ scheme. “Ghar toot jayega, but vote NDA ko hi jayega (Even if families break, women will vote for NDA only)," Kumar, a government employee, said.
The 'Jeevika Didi' is a Bihar government initiative under the Chief Minister's Women's Employment Scheme. Launched in September, two months before the polls, it involves depositing a one-time incentive of ₹10,000 into the bank accounts of members of the state's "Jeevika" self-help groups to help them start a business.
The focus on women voters
The political landscape of Bihar, where elections are scheduled for 6 and 11 November, has long been dominated by caste dynamics. However, in recent years, women voters have emerged as a significant political constituency that transcends caste lines.
Of the 7.42 crore voters in Bihar, 7.9 crore are men, while 3.5 crore are women
Women's voter turnout has been higher than that of men since the 2010 assembly elections in Bihar—a state with a high male migrant population. In 2010, the rates were 54.5% for women and 51.1% for men. In 2020, the voter turnout for women was 59.7%, while it was 54.7% for men.
“Kuch to kaam kar payenge ₹10,000 mein (At least we can do some businesses)," says Usha Devi, one of the beneficiaries, who is sitting in the bus to Saharsa and headed to Madhepura 50 km away.
Jeevika Didis play a crucial role in implementing various programmes, such as ‘Didi Ki Rasoi’, which provides affordable meals and creates entrepreneurial opportunities. Officially, there are approximately 11 lakh self-help groups and 1.40 crore women associated with them in Bihar.
The Nitish Kumar government's emphasis on cash incentives, welfare benefits, and empowerment programmes has helped him build a loyal base among women, yielding rich dividends. The 2020 Assembly Election, for example, was a close fight, and the Nitish Kumar-led NDA won it with a narrow margin. In the elections held amid the covid pandemic, the NDA secured a majority with 125 seats. The Mahagathbandhan won 110 seats.
A Lokniti-CSDS analysis found that Nitish’s victory was partly due to the support of young women voters. At least 40% of women in the 18-29-year-old category voted for the NDA, while 33% of the men in this age group voted for the NDA, the analysis said. Other reports based on Election Commission of India data suggested that the NDA won 60.5% of the seats in constituencies where the number of women voters exceeded that of men.
Experts said this is because Nitish has come across as a champion of welfare schemes in Bihar, particularly those centred around women. His government introduced 50% of rural and urban local body seats for women in 2006, followed by the provision of free bicycles for schoolgirls, which offers a cash subsidy to female students enrolling in the ninth grade to purchase a bicycle.
Nitish also expanded 35% reservation for women to all state government jobs in 2016. Even the alcohol prohibition imposed in 2016 is seen as a decision taken with women’s welfare in mind.
The ₹10,000 cash transfer to 1.25 crore Jeevika Didis has further strengthened his women-centric constituency, they said.
Political analyst Manisha Priyam, who is the Sir Louis Matheson Distinguished Visiting Professor at Monash University, acknowledges that one can’t ignore what Nitish Kumar has done for women. “The bicycle scheme, the reservation on Panchayats are of course stellar schemes. I have been travelling in Bihar. I did not find one Jeevika Didi say a word against Nitish. He enjoys the respect of women," says Priyam.
Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United) is contesting the election as part of the National Democratic Alliance, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as a partner. The NDA is being challenged by the Mahagathbandhan or Grand Alliance of the Congress, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Left.
The power of women voters is seen in other states as well. Cash transfers to women have been effective for the NDA in Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, as well as for the Congress in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh. As many as 11.3 crore women are receiving payments of ₹1,000-2,500 per month across 11 states, according to a policy brief by Prof Prabha Kotiswaran of King's College, London. Five states have offered similar cash transfers, Prof Kotiswaran said in the report.
Countering Nitish, Tejashwi Yadav also attempted to reach out to Jeevika workers and promised that his government would regularize all Community Mobiliser Jeevika Didis, in addition to providing them with a ₹30,000 monthly salary.
“Nitish Kumar is leading a copycat government. We said we would give 200 free electricity units. We promised a cash scheme for women, and they began giving each woman ₹10,000 to start a business. Tell me, how can someone start a business with just ₹10,000? The NDA is exploiting the women voters of Bihar. And women are aware of this," Mahagathbandhan’s chief minister face Tejashwi Yadav, the son of former chief minister Lalu Prasad, tells Mint.
Not for Urban Women
Those in the opposition argue that this scheme doesn’t benefit urban women.
“They think they can buy women by giving ₹10,000. What about the urban women, who have to depend on their male members to make ends meet?" says Divya Gautam, 34, the CPI(ML) Liberation's candidate for the Digha seat in Patna. Gautam is a cousin of the late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput, who died on 14 June 2020, at his home in Mumbai.
Anju Anand, a housewife in Punaichak in Patna, agrees. “What will you do in ₹10,000. And also it's not for everyone. What about middle-class housewives, who depend on husbands? What’s the government doing for them?" she asks.
Manisha Priyam also thinks that Jeevika Didi may not completely deliver for Nitish Kumar. “You have to respect Nitishji for what he has been. But then there are additional set of demands from women. Those demands are about security and education," she says.
Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor calls cash doles “bribery".
“For five years, you extorted money from people through corruption. You took money for a ration card, for homes in the police station. And right before the election, you offer ₹10,000 from people’s money," Kishor told Mint in a recent interview.
Back in our bus to Saharsa, Lalita, a college student who boarded near Triveniganj, asks, “How many women of Bihar have got scholarships to study? Cash doles are okay, but they should think of our futures too," she says.
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