Government unlikely to reserve mayoral posts for women

CHANDIGARH: Even though the Congress government introduced 50% reservation for women in civic bodies in the recently concluded elections, it is unlikely to give elected women representatives top jobs in the three municipal corporations.
Sources said a section of Congress MLAs are against the posts being reserved for women in the three corporations of Amritsar, Jalandhar and Patiala, besides 29 municipal councils, where elections were held last month. It has been highlighted that these are general corporations and there's no need for reservation.

Asked whether there are plans to have women mayors, local bodies minister Navjot Singh Sidhu said party leaders had left it to chief minister Amarinder Singh to take a call on this issue. "The choices will be made on merit and as per the rules applicable for these corporations only. There is a view that women councils have just been elected (and may need some more time). At the same time, there is a suggestion that the system followed by the Chandigarh municipal corporation to have a new mayor every year could be replicated in Punjab corporations," said Sidhu.

At many places there have been reports of established politicians fielding their daughters-in-law or wives after their wards were reserved under the new policy of 50% reservation for women. Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Daljit Singh Cheema said as women representation in the civic bodies increases in the coming years, their claims to the posts of mayor would automatically become stronger.

Earlier, in 2015, the previous SAD-BJP government had decided to reserve the post of Mohali mayor for a woman candidate. The reservation was made under Section 6 of the Punjab Municipal Corporation Act, 1976. The decision had been taken by the government after seeking legal opinion. Similarly, Haryana government has reserved the post of Municipal Corporation of Gurgaon (MCG) mayor for SC woman candidate.

The Punjab assembly passed the bills for 50% quota for women in Panchayati Raj Institutions by increasing it from the earlier 33% on July 23. The Punjab Panchayati Raj (Amendment) and the Punjab Municipal (Amendment) Bills were moved by ministers Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa and Navjot Singh Sidhu.