BENGALURU: With 61 of the 100 newly elected BJP corporators women, they are likely to land many plum posts in the BBMP Council, like that of the chair of various standing committees and that of the ruling party leader. The deputy mayor’s post is reserved for a woman while that of the mayor is for the General category.
A senior BJP leader said all these years, the BBMP Council was male-dominated. Now, the reservation for women has increased to 50 per cent. Hence, more women got elected. There are 100 women in total in the Council this time.
The leader said posts like the ruling party leader, chairpersons of the town planning, taxation and finance committees had earlier gone to men. According to a woman BJP corporator, the chairperson of the standing committee for taxation and finance has the power to present the budget. All these years, no woman has presented the budget. “Since we make up over 60 per cent (of the BJP’s BBMP representation), we will demand that a woman be chosen as party leader and also that she get to present the budget.”
The party may also consider a woman for the mayoral post. BJP vice-president and Jayanagar MLA B N Vijaykumar told Express, “We are looking for an experienced person. The party may consider a capable woman from the General quota for the post.”
However, BJP sources said it will likely be a male candidate again for the mayoral post as “the deputy mayor’s post is already reserved for a woman”.
The six women Mayors So Far
B Indiramma from the Congress, who was elected in 1960, was the first woman mayor. She was followed by Padmavathi Gangadhar of the JD(S) in 1996, Prema Cariappa (2000) and Mumtaz Begum (2005), both from the Congress, and Sharadamma (2011) and Shantha Kumari (2014) of the BJP.