A Foot In The Door: Dalit Women In Panchayati Raj In Gujarat And Tamil Nadu

A Foot in the Door is the culmination of research undertaken in the rural panchayats of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, and brings the voices of Dalit women to the fore. The authors examine the patriarchal and caste-based barriers to Dalit women’s political participation in Panchayati Raj, and make it clear that without a more holistic approach, the panchayats will only continue to reinforce existing and undeniably violent hierarchies of caste and gender. Dalit women’s political participation remains a risky endeavour, and involves very little actual transfer of power. Getting ‘a foot in the door’ is not enough – the affirmative action that secures a Dalit woman’s right to enter the panchayats still, more often than not, silences them in the process of seeking active participation. An essential read for feminist and Dalit scholars working on issues of gender, caste and political participation, A Foot in the Door argues that there is a need for deep, systemic change at every level of governance. Only then can equal and meaningful participation be ensured.