In effort to end gender bias, women to be encouraged not to wear ‘ghoonghat’ to cast vote in Rajasthan

Rural women will be encouraged to not wear "ghoonghat" when they go to cast their vote during the Panchayat elections being held in Rajasthan this month, an official said.

The idea is a part of an awareness campaign that has been introduced by the Women and Child Development Department after Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot's call for eradicating the custom of "ghoonghat" or veil.

Various activities with the involvement of district administration officials, grassroots workers, public representatives, social workers have been planned under the campaign, a senior official said.

"We have introduced the campaign against the practice of 'ghoonghat' in all the districts. The chief minister has stated that the practice should be eradicated and therefore we have recently launched the campaign," P C Pawan, director (women empowerment) of the department, told PTI.

Rural women are also being inspired to not wear "ghoonghat" when they go to cast their vote during the Panchayat elections this month, the official of the women empowerment, Jaipur said.

Similarly, in Sikar also, officials are planning to motivate rural women to start doing away with the practice during the Panchayat elections.

"Several activities have been planned under the campaign to create awareness among women and men. The practice is largely prevalent in rural areas and we will be asking them to not wear 'ghoonghat' when they go to cast vote," Anuradha Saxena, assistant director of the Women and Child Development Department-Sikar, said.

"Our grassroot workers, Sathin, along with activists, members of women self-help groups and local women are holding meetings every Friday on different issues. The issue of 'ghoonghat' is being discussed on one Friday every month," she said.

Saxena informed that posters have been prepared which will be pasted in villages, and social media platforms will also be used for creating awareness.

"The message of 'ghoonghat hatao' has also been clubbed with the district collector's night chaupal," she said.

Gehlot has on different occasions called for eradicating the practice of 'ghoonghat', saying this was an obstacle in women empowerment.