By Prakash Chand Dubey
Dharampur, India (UCAN) -- Samshul Nesha's landslide victory in recent village council elections surprised even herself. Even in her wildest dreams, the 40-year-old Muslim woman says she never expected "this miracle victory."
Nesha defeated three Hindu women in Dharampur, a predominantly Hindu village within Bettiah diocese in Bihar state, 985 kilometers east of New Delhi.Bihar held village council elections in 10 phases from May 15 to June 10, and announced the results on June 22. A government decision to reserve half of the seats for women helped Nesha and other illiterate women enter the fray.Women now head half of Bihar's 261,000 various village council offices, according to Bishop Victor Henry Thakur of Bettiah. Barely 2,000-5,000 women could fill such offices in the past, the prelate pointed out.Bishop Thakur told UCA News that the new development will "not only empower women tremendously, but also revolutionize" the state's social and economic situation. It also gives hope to the state's 90 million people to prosper, he added, because women will use their "knack" for managing kitchens and rearing children to "nurse our rural economy."Nesha credits the Catholic Church for her victory. She is among nearly 1 million women who belong to about 20,000 self-help groups that the Church manages in its six dioceses in Bihar. She explained that these groups, launched in the early 1990s, not only empowered village women but also promoted interreligious dialogue at the grassroots.Father Saji Thengumpallil, director of the Socio Economic Development Center of Muzaffarpur diocese, agrees that self-help group members have "certainly played a crucial role" in the recent elections.Nesha won 4,500 of the 8,000 votes cast in her village, where only 200 people are Muslims, and was eventually elected village council chief. Her closest rival mustered only 2,000 votes. She says interfaith prayer meetings that the Church regularly conducts in villages have helped remove "traditional Hindu-Muslim animosity" by helping villagers to realize that every religion stands for love and human solidarity.Murali Mishra, a Hindu lawyer from Nesha's village, agrees that the interfaith programs helped people of different faiths grow closer. A decade ago, Mishra said, no Muslim would have dared contest a village election. "We voted for Nesha because she has all the ingredients of a social-political leader," she added. "She is always concerned about the welfare of all without any prejudice."Nesha won despite the fact that she could not afford to print and distribute her election symbol, while her rivals spent a lot of money on publicity. Ballots in India always carry symbols, such as animals or easily recognizable objects, to help illiterate voters identify candidates.The new village council head claims that the self-help groups have given poor women the new distinction of being self-reliant, ready to assert their rights and stand for justice and dignity. "This is our real trademark, and that is why ordinary voters stood by us," Nesha said.Kishori Tatwa, a low-caste woman elected chief of another village, similarly remarked that the recent elections demonstrate that she and other women have harvested the fruits of the self-help groups pioneered by the Church.In the past, women would venture out only with their husband or a male relative, but the Church programs gave them the courage to go out and seek votes even at night. In Tatwa's view, such boldness inspired other women, as well as many men, to vote for them.In contrast, upper-caste women candidates stayed at home while their male relatives solicited votes for them. Tatwa said their approach sent a signal to people that those women would become elusive or puppets after the elections.According to Father Francis Tirkey, administrator of Purnea diocese, the women village councilors will decide how to utilize the billions of rupees earmarked annually for rural development in Bihar. "Henceforth, nothing will move in the villages without their consent," Father Tirkey told UCA News.For Sacred Heart Sister Celestine, who leads the Church empowerment program in Nesha's village, the election results indicate that women have a "golden opportunity" to end gender inequality in "our male-dominated society." The nun predicts the women's success will revolutionize "our society."Her optimism is shared by Father Jose Kalapura, who directs Bihar Social Institute. The Jesuit priest expects the changes in Bihar to have far-reaching implications for the entire country. Bihar's current literacy rate of 47.53 percent is well below the national average of 64.8 percent. "I am confident Bihar will show the way," Father Kalapura told UCA News.
Nesha defeated three Hindu women in Dharampur, a predominantly Hindu village within Bettiah diocese in Bihar state, 985 kilometers east of New Delhi.Bihar held village council elections in 10 phases from May 15 to June 10, and announced the results on June 22. A government decision to reserve half of the seats for women helped Nesha and other illiterate women enter the fray.Women now head half of Bihar's 261,000 various village council offices, according to Bishop Victor Henry Thakur of Bettiah. Barely 2,000-5,000 women could fill such offices in the past, the prelate pointed out.Bishop Thakur told UCA News that the new development will "not only empower women tremendously, but also revolutionize" the state's social and economic situation. It also gives hope to the state's 90 million people to prosper, he added, because women will use their "knack" for managing kitchens and rearing children to "nurse our rural economy."Nesha credits the Catholic Church for her victory. She is among nearly 1 million women who belong to about 20,000 self-help groups that the Church manages in its six dioceses in Bihar. She explained that these groups, launched in the early 1990s, not only empowered village women but also promoted interreligious dialogue at the grassroots.Father Saji Thengumpallil, director of the Socio Economic Development Center of Muzaffarpur diocese, agrees that self-help group members have "certainly played a crucial role" in the recent elections.Nesha won 4,500 of the 8,000 votes cast in her village, where only 200 people are Muslims, and was eventually elected village council chief. Her closest rival mustered only 2,000 votes. She says interfaith prayer meetings that the Church regularly conducts in villages have helped remove "traditional Hindu-Muslim animosity" by helping villagers to realize that every religion stands for love and human solidarity.Murali Mishra, a Hindu lawyer from Nesha's village, agrees that the interfaith programs helped people of different faiths grow closer. A decade ago, Mishra said, no Muslim would have dared contest a village election. "We voted for Nesha because she has all the ingredients of a social-political leader," she added. "She is always concerned about the welfare of all without any prejudice."Nesha won despite the fact that she could not afford to print and distribute her election symbol, while her rivals spent a lot of money on publicity. Ballots in India always carry symbols, such as animals or easily recognizable objects, to help illiterate voters identify candidates.The new village council head claims that the self-help groups have given poor women the new distinction of being self-reliant, ready to assert their rights and stand for justice and dignity. "This is our real trademark, and that is why ordinary voters stood by us," Nesha said.Kishori Tatwa, a low-caste woman elected chief of another village, similarly remarked that the recent elections demonstrate that she and other women have harvested the fruits of the self-help groups pioneered by the Church.In the past, women would venture out only with their husband or a male relative, but the Church programs gave them the courage to go out and seek votes even at night. In Tatwa's view, such boldness inspired other women, as well as many men, to vote for them.In contrast, upper-caste women candidates stayed at home while their male relatives solicited votes for them. Tatwa said their approach sent a signal to people that those women would become elusive or puppets after the elections.According to Father Francis Tirkey, administrator of Purnea diocese, the women village councilors will decide how to utilize the billions of rupees earmarked annually for rural development in Bihar. "Henceforth, nothing will move in the villages without their consent," Father Tirkey told UCA News.For Sacred Heart Sister Celestine, who leads the Church empowerment program in Nesha's village, the election results indicate that women have a "golden opportunity" to end gender inequality in "our male-dominated society." The nun predicts the women's success will revolutionize "our society."Her optimism is shared by Father Jose Kalapura, who directs Bihar Social Institute. The Jesuit priest expects the changes in Bihar to have far-reaching implications for the entire country. Bihar's current literacy rate of 47.53 percent is well below the national average of 64.8 percent. "I am confident Bihar will show the way," Father Kalapura told UCA News.
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