ABSTRACT
This chapter explores how geographical contexts affect women’s negotiation and use of public space in political arenas located within rural areas in West Bengal. At the heart of this chapter is the idea that space is not just a container of events but an important causal factor in itself. Thus, differences in the nature of space have implications for the events and processes unfolding in it. Drawing on empirical research conducted in rural districts of West Bengal, the author looks at the spatial variation of the process of political decentralization and how it has come to influence gendered spaces and political practices within these spaces. With reference to the spaces of panchayats or local decision-making bodies, the author argues that spaces are intricately intertwined in the ways women relate to power and that decentralization of political processes comes to complicate gendered spaces. The main argument is that women’s restricted access to political and public space is largely a manifestation of historical socially produced gender practices.
