In a small but significant move towards gender parity, Gujarat Education Minister Jitu Vaghani asked Meenaba Zala, the first elected woman sarpanch of Gujarat’s Rantej village, to remove her veil before presenting him with a souvenir.
Meenaba was seated on the floor with the rest of the village’s women, while the men were seated on plastic chairs.
“If the elders allow, I would request Meenaba to come out of this riwaaz (tradition)," the minister said as reported by The Indian Express.
The villagers had gathered for the launch of the annual Shala Praveshotsav and Kanya Kelavani, initiatives which ensure maximum enrollment of children in schools, especially girls.
Reacting to an opposition, Vaghani was quick to respond to a villager who emphasised that the community was Darbar (Rajput). "What does caste have to do with this? Darbar, Patel, Vaniya or Brahmin… see how happy the women are and the blessings they will give you,” he told them.
“Maan maryaada (respect and modesty) is alright but when you are a Sarpanch you have to come out of these traditions. Let the village decide. Look around, where the world has reached… by doing this (removing veil) we do not lose our maan maryaada. Follow everything but at home. I do not say this riwaaz is bad but we have to change as per the time and come out of this so that we can move forward." he further explained to the men.
After one of the villager elders agreed, Meenaba reluctantly revealed her face and a chair was arranged for her on stage.
She later told the publication: “The minister is right. We should keep our ghunghat at home and need to come out of this (tradition). We are anyway behind our veils at home but we need to move forward with time.”
“There is resistance from elders because they lack education. But things are changing slowly. Now, girls are getting educated.”, she added.
Meenaba defeated 6 male candidates 6 months ago to become the sarpanch.
According to the 2011 census, Rantej has 1650 male residents and 1552 female residents. The area is still held down by patriarchy and other communities have flagged concerns over schools not having classes 9 and 10. Girls are forced to drop out after 8th grade because families don't allow them to travel to other villages or cities.