SP youth leader Pooja Shukla on women’s bill, SIR and battle for 2027

From student activist to a key political contender, Pooja Shukla has emerged as a prominent youth face of the Samajwadi Party. 

She first gained statewide attention in June 2017 for stopping Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s motorcade to wave black flags, an act that led to twenty days in jail, and a few years later, even participated in the 2020 anti-CAA protests. 

In the 2022 Assembly elections, the SP fielded her as its candidate from the Lucknow North constituency, a contest she ultimately lost by a very narrow margin.

With the conclusion of a special intensive revision (SIR) of the voter rolls in Uttar Pradesh, the first stirrings of the 2027 Assembly elections have begun to appear. Recently, the Election Commission struck over 20 million names off the voter list.

What will be the opposition's strategy in the wake of this major change? How justified is the SP's demand regarding women's reservation? Furthermore, what challenges do women typically encounter in politics? 

Watch the interview here.

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