Alleging discrimination on the basis of caste and gender, the lone woman minister in the Puducherry cabinet, Chandira Priyanga, resigned as the Minister of Transport on Tuesday, October 10. Chandira, who belongs to a Dalit community, submitted her resignation to Chief Minister N Rangaswamy. She was a member of the All India NR Congress, the ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Chandira however did not mention the names of the people who had harassed her.
Referring to her unfair treatment based on caste and gender, in her resignation letter Chandira took a dig at the recently introduced Women’s Reservation Bill by the BJP. “I would like to express my gratitude to those who are only chanting on the platforms that women have priorities in power share and 33 percent reservation.”
Chandira said that it was very challenging to fight against the “politics of deceit and money” even if she had the support of the people. “I took pride in my two identities as a Dalit and a woman. But I was unaware that it was irking others and I realised I was frequently subjected to harassment in the line of caste and gender,” she said.
Without naming anyone, Chandira said that she was constantly targeted by bringing up her personal life.
In her resignation letter, Chandira apologised to the people of her constituency and said, “I resigned as I realised it was impossible for me to fight against dominant forces to continue as a minister,” adding that she would continue to work for her constituency as the legislator.
She also urged the Chief Minister to give the vacant minister post to a legislator from Vanniyar or Dalit community or minority religion.
Chandira, who is the daughter of former Puducherry Minister Chandirakasu, joined politics in 2016 after her father passed away. She was elected from the Nedungadu (reserved) constituency in Karaikal, twice in the 2016 and 2021 assembly elections. In the 2021 Puducherry assembly election, she contested against Marimuthu from Indian National Congress and won with a margin of 8,560 votes. It is to be noted that she was the second woman minister in the 41-year history of Puducherry. Besides Transport, she was also given the portfolios of Adi Dravidar Welfare; Housing, Labour and Employment; Art and Culture; and Economics and Statistics.