APJ Abdul Kalam and Women Empowerment

Rutba Iqbal / Awaz E Khwateen

A young Kalam one day felt an insurmountable responsibility towards his mother when he saw her sacrificing her needs for him.

"One day, at dinner, my mother went on giving me chapattis. When we rose, my elder brother chided me in private: “Kalam, do you realise you went on eating chapatis and Amma kept giving you even her share? It is a difficult time. Be a responsible son and do not make your mother starve”. I was seized by a shivering sensation which I could not control. I rushed to my mother and hugged her", recalled Kalam during a speech. A strong sense of respect towards women was strongly instilled in Kalam since he was a child. To Kalam being a soldier meant to rally for the cause of women. He tried to boost the morale of women and recognised their potential and efforts in nation building.

Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam was one of the first pro-women politicians in India. His approach to holistic national development was through women empowerment. He never peddled the idea of an all bearing or sacrificial woman, rather he emphasised on a happy woman as a key to a developed nation.

“Empowerment of women leads to development of a good family, good society and, ultimately, a good nation. When the woman is happy, the home is happy. When the home is happy, the society is happy and when the society is happy the state is happy and when the state is happy there will be peace in the country and it will develop at greater pace”.

Kalam was a great believer in making small changes, he stressed on taking accountability and making ground changes, “When it comes to burning social issues like those related to women, dowry, girl child and others, we make loud drawing room protestations and continue to do the reverse at home". In Wings of Fire, Kalam called out those who make excuses about social issues related to women.

Quoting the people who make excuses, he said, "It’s the whole system which has to change, how will it matter if I alone forgo my sons’ rights to a dowry. "So who’s going to change the system?”, he asked. He was a firm believer in change beginning at home and his philosophy revolved around making tangible changes.

Kalam was a dreamer and his ambitions for women always rose high, he always pushed for inclusive politics. While addressing a gathering of students at Avinashilingam University he said, "We must get 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament”. He believed women politicians to be more pragmatic, “If women get into the Assembly, they would bring some order. We can also hope to see developmental politics instead of political politics if more women enter the scene.”

Kalam often said that the women he had worked with had influenced him a lot. He was amazed by their professionalism and devotion to family. He never missed a chance to demonstrate his respect for women and urged for revival of traditions that respect women and treated them as equals. "When we respect women, we respect our nation. All men must stand by and stand up for all women."

Kalam linked a stable society to empowered women, every incident from his life shows how deeply he recognised injustices done to women. He tried to sensitise the youth to their problems and urged them to unite and fulfill his vision of an equal India.