What does it mean to shatter the ceiling when the floor that you stand on has always been irregular? Meira Kumar, India’s first woman Speaker in the Lok Sabha, has shattered political ceilings but also brought her identity of being a Dalit woman as a powerful instrument of advocacy to the heart of politics. Meira Kumar’s life is an adventurous answer to the challenge of representation in justice that can transform the moral geography of the nation.
Family background and early years
Meira Kumar is a politician and Speaker of the 15th Lok Sabha, who has left her mark on the field of Indian politics. Born in a politically active family with many Dalit leaders and social activists, Meira Kumar’s father Babu Jagjivan Ram was not only a well-known freedom fighter but also Deputy Prime Minister. Her mother, Indrani Devi, was a social worker. Kumar holds B.A. and M.A. in English Literature with LL.B. from the University of Delhi. It is because of Kumar’s parents, particularly her mother’s influence, that she chose to follow the path to justice for everyone. Meira Kumar has been an active social worker since her youth and was associated with various social movements for reforms and human rights.
During the famine in the state of Bihar in the year 1967, she was appointed as the Chairperson of National Drought Relief Committee constituted by the Congress and she had also worked towards the establishment of the Family Adoption Scheme, through which drought-affected families would get help from voluntarily contributing households. Through all this, she had gained a good base in the provision of relief before venturing into politics.
Career and entry into politics
Before entering Politics, Meira Kumar served the Indian Foreign Service for more than a decade, where she was stationed in Spain and the United Kingdom. This job taught her how to negotiate, build bridges between different groups and represent India’s diverse culture to the world. However, she felt a strong pull to work directly on the social issues she cared about at home. She left diplomacy to join politics in 1985, encouraged by her father and by Rajiv Gandhi, the then prime minister of India.
She ran in a by-election for a seat in the Lok Sabha from a constituency in Uttar Pradesh state defeating two other Dalit candidates. Being close to the politically powerful Gandhi family and representing the oppressed castes, Kumar’s political career progressed steadily within the Indian National Congress (INC) and she quickly made a name for herself as a strong advocate for human rights and the abolition of the caste system.
Meira Kumar is a highly accomplished politician who has been a member of numerous decision-making bodies within the INC, serving twice as its General Secretary.
Meira Kumar is a highly accomplished politician who has been a member of numerous decision-making bodies within the INC, serving twice as its General Secretary. She became a member of the Congress Working Committee, the organisation’s highest decision-making body in 1990 and continued it for a decade till 2000. She resigned from the Congress Party in 2000, citing differences with the party leadership but rejoined it after a gap of two years. In 2004 and 2009 she contested and won the Lok Sabha seat from Sasaram in Bihar state, the constituency once represented by her father.
Advocacy for social justice
During her political career, she has served on various committees, including the Public Accounts Committee and the Joint Committee on the Empowerment of Women as a Member of Parliament. Additionally, she also served as Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment (2004-2009) which deepened her activism against caste exclusion. She challenged private sector reservation opposition and said sustainable growth needs ending Dalit and tribal marginalisation. Her focus shifted from handouts to true empowerment.
Appointed as the Minister of Water Resources in the 14th Lok Sabha shortly after her victory in the elections of 2009, in June of the same year, she achieved a tremendous historical feat as the first woman Lok Sabha Speaker. This moment symbolically meant a lot to women in the state of India. During her role as the Speaker, Meira Kumar achieved many milestones to bring gender equality to the politics of India.
She started the gender-neutral rules in the House, replacing gendered terms with gender-neutral expressions in the rules of the House. This action brought a remarkable revolution in the setting of the Parliament to be friendly to all its members irrespective of gender. During her term as the Speaker, in 2011, Kumar reduced paper usage by 30% in the Lok Sabha with tablets and also expressed her support to the increasing nationwide protests against violence on women in the nation. She also announced the formation of a Parliamentary Friendship Group to improve relations with the nation of Bhutan.
In speeches, Meira Kumar calls for ‘zero tolerance on prejudice‘ and the end of the caste system. In the 2017 presidential election, Kumar secured the United Progressive Alliance’s nomination as their joint candidate for President of India. This was a testament to her widespread respect as a symbol of social justice, secularism and constitutional values as she said, ‘Democratic values, social justice, transparency, freedom of speech, inclusiveness, destruction of caste system, end of poverty — these are part of the ideology which is close to my heart. For this very reason, on the plank of this ideology I will compete.‘ Thus, her 2017 presidential bid stressed destruction of caste barriers and inclusion.
‘Democratic values, social justice, transparency, freedom of speech, inclusiveness, destruction of caste system, end of poverty — these are part of the ideology which is close to my heart. For this very reason, on the plank of this ideology I will compete.‘
– Meira Kumar
At her first press conference after being selected as joint candidate for President, with BJP’s Ram Nath Kovind, whose Dalit identity was being stressed on far more than his work by the BJP, she said, ‘Will you appreciate the highest post of the land being decided on the basis of caste? The dignity of the office will be destroyed if we accept this.’
Referring to the scrutiny on the two Dalit candidates in the 2017 Indian presidential elections, she further added, ‘I am anguished the debate is focused on caste alone. This shows how the society works, how the people think even now. Social realities are coming to the fore through this caste-specific discourse. There have been candidates from so-called upper castes in the past and their caste was never debated. Their abilities and merit were discussed.’
Meira Kumar also talked about how India had still not moved beyond caste. ‘Today, the debate has been reduced to caste alone because two Dalits are in the fray (for the President’s post). Other attributes of the candidates have been nullified. I can clearly see how the society still views Dalits. I hope caste is packed up and buried deep inside the earth‘, she said.
Besides political endeavors, it is hinted that Meira Kumar has a penchant for creative expression. She has published her poetry and paintings in reputed magazines and newspapers and was the editor of a monthly magazine called Pavan Prasad. She also has a special interest in classical music, reading and horseback riding.
Meira Kumar’s legacy
Meira Kumar’s love for justice and equality along with her impressive political and professional credentials, has resulted in her becoming a legendary figure and a shining example for many politicians in the context of India. It is because of her intelligence, courage, and character that she is admired by all classes of politicians. Meira Kumar is truly an exemplary politician, dedicating her life and career for the realisation of a just and equal society.
