Union Minister Smriti Irani presents Shakti awards to women achievers

NEW DELHI: Speaking at iTV Network’s “We Women Want” Conclave at the Taj Vivanta Ambassador, Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Smriti Irani, on Monday said that the biggest myth about politics is that it is tough and good people must stay out of politics.
Smriti Irani graced the occasion as the chief guest and keynote speaker. The minister also presented the Shakti Awards to 25 women achievers of India. The Shakti Awards honour inspiring women who have excelled in their respective fields.
Asked how she handles misogyny in politics, Irani said, “First, people say that politics is difficult, so good people stay out of politics. That is the biggest myth about politics. If you can contribute as a professional in any field, then you are well suited for politics.”
She added, “The second misconception is misogyny is only the virtue of politics. Misogyny is something that permeates all walks of life. So if you ask me how do I deal with this, I have been in the media business, the only difference possibly is that in India, people look upon character from a misogyny point of you. But in politics and in any other field where you can assert yourself, misogyny is used only as a tool to reduce you to your gender.”
While speaking about her personal life, she said, “I think that much about my life is not known which predates politics. And before I became a BJP member, I was the USAID ambassador to India on the WHO programme for ORS. I had the opportunity, when I was around 23, to look at issues regarding women’s health across states which had a huge health parameter challenge. And if you delve deeper into my non-familiar background, it belonged to the family of ‘swayamsevaks’. There was an understanding in the family that if you want to serve social causes, choose institutions which are basically civil in nature and have absolutely no political resonance.”
Irani further said, “But I realised in my work especially in areas of women’s health and children health that till we do not have decisive input in policy-making, not much actually will change which reflects what we experience and what we seek as citizens in terms of change. And my first interface in politics was in the state of Maharashtra. My leaders were Gopinath Munde and Pramod Mahajanji. They told me it’s easy to speak from the sidelines, it’s easy to speak from the benches, it is easy to scream from the trenches; what is difficult is to become a part of policy making and then bring about change.”
She further said that her membership in the BJP was a well thought decision. “I could have just reduced myself being a civil society member and helped as a stakeholder, but I wanted to be a part of policy-making and that is why I think it is essential to be a part of electoral politics,” she said.