Patna: Bihar Mahila Congress President Sarwat Jahan Fatema has resigned from her post, citing the party’s failure to adequately represent women in the state’s upcoming elections. Fatema expressed her frustration over the low number of women candidates and criticised the party leadership for sidelining female leaders.
“Women are needed to gather crowds, but not positions,” she said, taking a dig at State Incharge Krishna Allavaru and State President Rajesh Ram. “Today, the Bihar Congress is devoid of women in the Legislative Council and Assembly.”
Just 8% of tickets for women
In the forthcoming elections, Congress is contesting 60 seats in Bihar, yet only five women have been given tickets—amounting to just 8% representation. “As Mahila Congress President, this outcome is extremely disappointing, and I hold myself morally responsible,” Fatima said. “While holding a responsible position, I cannot ignore this reality. The goal of increasing women’s leadership and political participation was not achieved this time. This is the main reason for my resignation.”
Traditional norms broken
Fatima highlighted that traditionally, former presidents of the Bihar Pradesh Mahila Congress have been granted assembly tickets. However, she was not considered for one despite being the current state president. “I belong to a minority community, and a decision was taken this time to break this tradition,” she said, adding that party leadership told her only women “likely to win” would be given tickets. “But all our women workers are grounded people. If there is a protest or a public meeting, women should be visible and present there.”
She also invoked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s advocacy for women’s rights, stating, “Rahul Gandhi has always strongly advocated for justice for half the population, for full rights, and for equal participation of women.”
