Political Empowerment of Women: A Contemporary Study of Assam

Shariful Islam

Abstract: Empowerment of women in all spheres and especially in politics is crucial for their advancement and for the foundation of a gender equal society. Empowerment can be defined as a process of awareness, capacity building, effective decision making power and transformative action. Political empowerment is the process of acquiring different elements of power which includes capabilities, positions and resources. Political empowerment is crucial for the development and progress of women. Women will be politically empowered only if there is adequate and equal representation and participation of women in politics. Participation of women in politics makes the democratic system more efficient and viable. However, after 75 years independence, a large number of women are still excluded from active participation in the political arena. Assamese women have not yet been able to make their presence felt in the regional or national political scene. This paper is an attempt to analyze the political empowerment of women and the barriers to the political empowerment of women in the state of Assam.

Keywords: Women, Political Participation, Empowerment, Rights, Assam