How Smriti Irani has failed both BJP and women

As many as 62 women got elected to the outgoing Lok Sabha in 2014, the highest ever. In 2009 the number of women in the Lok Sabha was 58. Not surprisingly, most of the women in the Lok Sabha belonged to the Bharatiya Janata Party, which had won a majority on its own, and its allies in the NDA. That is why when Prime Minister Narendra Modi picked Smriti Irani to be a member of his council of ministers, there was surprise even within the BJP. Irani had not just lost the election from Amethi but BJP had several other women in the ranks of the elected, who were better qualified to be a Union Minister.

That doubts about the suitability of Irani to be a minister were not misplaced became apparent soon enough when it was pointed out that she had given conflicting details of her educational qualification in her nomination papers in 2004, 2009 and in 2014. It seemed she was herself not clear whether she had studied humanities or commerce and whether she had indeed graduated or studied up to the first year of the undergraduate course. Even as the controversy raged, she made it worse by claiming at a public function that she had a degree from Yale in the United States, where the university, she claimed, had celebrated her leadership qualities.

It again turned out that she was being economical with the truth. She apparently had attended a six-day leadership course at Yale along with several other Indian Members of Parliament. That a Union Minister could flaunt it as an academic course was embarrassing because Prime Minister Modi in his wisdom had entrusted her with the ministry of Human Resources Development (HRD). She had to be shifted to the ministry of Textiles after her inglorious stint in HRD. Her performance at the Information & Broadcasting Ministry too , given to her as an additional charge for a short while, generated more controversy. In short, her performance as minister has been far from memorable.

But her utility to her party and to her mentor is obvious. She has willingly undertaken the task of making crude, unsubstantiated and personal innuendos against the Gandhi family and target Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and now Priyanka Gandhi. But even by her own standards, she hit a new low when, asked to compare herself with Priyanka Gandhi, she told a TV channel snidely that her brother was not known to be a ‘Bewakoof’ (a fool) nor her husband was known as a ‘Zameen Chor’ (one who steals land).

The comment may have pleased her party leaders, who do seem to put a premium on people who can be abusive in public life. None of the three members of the Gandhi family she targeted is known to have uttered a single bad word about Irani. On the contrary, they have been dignified in their response and allowed facts to speak for themselves. Irani also betrayed her lack of political understanding by delivering dialogues which may work in TV serials but not in politics.

It is disheartening to find women leaders abusing other women and reducing them to passive objects related to their roles as wife, daughter and sister. While the electorate would be keen to know about professional credentials, leadership capacity, skills and acumen, it is trite to focus on clever but meaningless personal attacks on political rivals. Even when political discourse is centred on winning election, the conversation needs to be centred on issues that a leader must address.

But Irani’s attack on Priyanka Gandhi centred on her alleged failure to visit the Ram Lalla in the makeshift temple at Ayodhya. If Priyanka Gandhi had visited the shrine, Irani insinuated, her voters (read Muslim voters) would have turned away. Irani also seemed to have a problem with Priyanka Gandhi’s journey in a boat on the river Ganga to listen to the plight of boatmen and fishermen who live on the river bank.

Irony died many deaths when Irani accuses Rahul Gandhi of corruption. The minister and her husband have been accused of usurping land by questionable means and the CAG has questioned the manner in which she used her MPLAD funds and how she instructed the district authorities in Gujarat to flout guidelines and award work to an NGO specified by the minister. Accusing the minister of misusing public funds, demands were raised to sack her from the council of ministers.

It is time for the Election Commission to take a hard look at personal innunendos and re-define what is acceptable and what is not. Provoking religious sentiments alone should not come into the ambit of hate speech.

Women who have broken the glass ceilings in our male dominated world, have a special responsibility to ensure that they do not put the glass ceiling back in place. The few women who have made a mark in politics owe it to themselves and to other women to ensure that they set an example and become role models. Smriti Irani, unfortunately, has failed women and betrayed the cause of women.

The author is the national general secretary of All India Mahila Congress