India Matters: Headscarves and ballot boxes

Even before the government passed the legislation for increasing representation of women to 50 per cent from 33, major political parties such as the CPI (M) and the Congress had made a shift in the gender pattern of their candidates. But 2010 saw the first electoral outing of the ultra conservative Jamat-e-Islami Hind which allowed its female cadres to contest as independents. Seven of them were elected.