This Delhi polls, percentage of women voters highest in 27 yrs

New Delhi: With over 66.35 lakh women voters, this Delhi assembly election will see the highest proportion of women voting in the last 27 years, which stands at 45.16 per cent of the total electorate in the Capital city. In addition, the 2020 assembly polls will also witness the highest number of women registered to vote since 1993 at a staggering 66,35, 635 out of the total electors which stands at over 1.46 crore this year.

However, interestingly, in a poll where over 45 per cent voters are female, only 11.75 per cent of the total contesting candidates are women. In fact, of the 203 candidates fielded by the three major parties –Congress, BJP and AAP –only 24 or 11.82 per cent are women, which is a marginal increase from 19 women candidates fielded by the three parties in 2015.

Rani (34), a housemaid living in the Lal Bagh area of the Model Town constituency said that she will be voting for women safety and security this time, in addition to thinking about basic amenities like clear sewage and drainage systems and continuous supply of water.

"There are still some areas where we don't feel safe walking in the evening," she said.

While women candidates such as Akanksha Ola of Congress, who is contesting from the Model Town seat, have put women security high on their priority list, so have candidates such as Tajinder Bagga (BJP), who is contesting from Hari Nagar constituency. Radhika Khera of Congress has said that her area in Janakpuri is in dire need of proper surveillance systems and streetlights.

In 2015, 44.47 per cent of all registered voters were women and the proportion of women voters in Delhi has seen a slow but steady rise since 1998 when the proportion of female voters was at its lowest between 1993 and 2020 at 42.38 per cent. The second-highest proportion of women voters was seen in the 1993 assembly elections of Delhi, which was conducted after a 10-year-gap.

Moreover, candidates like Atishi (AAP), who is contesting from Kalkaji assembly segment, are focusing on providing the best education infrastructure. Atishi's contributions to the AAP government's education policies are obviously things acknowledged by many women voters in Delhi. Kamala (32), wife of an auto driver, said that she can see the difference in the education being provided at their children's government schools.

However, noteworthy is the fact that despite only 11.75 per cent women candidates contesting, this is the largest proportion of women candidates fielded in Delhi since 1993, when only 4.48 per cent of contesting candidates were women.