Representatives from seven women's organisations met Chief Election Commissioner M S Gill to convince him that the EC should prod political parties into giving a fairer deal to women, and in ensuring an equitable poll process.

``The progressive nature of the Indian Constitution has ensured that women are present in the administration, judiciary and other spheres of life. But this is not reflected in our polity,'' Gill told journalists.

A number of political parties had professed support for the women's reservation bill but when it came to the crunch in Parliament they backed away. Gill said that if these parties were serious about ensuring greater representation to women in the legislature and Parliament, they should give more tickets to women candidates in the comingpolls.

``If even 100 of the 543 MPs in Parliament are women, they would have a tremendous civilizing and progressive effect on productivity in Parliament,'' Gill said.

The women's organisations have also drawn the Commission's attention to the steep increase in crimes against women and the indifference of political parties to their party members indulging in such crimes.

The women's groups have demanded that Section 8 of the Representation of People Act, 1951, which debars persons convicted of a crime from contesting elections, be also implemented stringently, especially with regard to crimes against women.

Since the conviction rate in crimes against women is abysmally low, women activists are demanding that the Commission direct political parties to refrain from giving tickets to those with a tainted past.

``All we need are 543 adarsh log (ideal persons) to be in Parliament. Surely in a country of one hundred crore, we can find 543 such adarsh log,'' said Gill.

The women activistshave asked the Commission to intervene to prevent sexist, degrading and demeaning references to women during the course of the election campaign. Mimicking and mocking women candidates and women leaders are all indulged in by their rivals. Now women activists want the Commission to declare such behaviour grounds for disqualification from the poll.

``I would strongly urge poll parties to try and scotch such tendencies. There should be no negative campaign and least of all against 50 per cent of the population,'' Gill said. The women's groups, which met the CEC included the All India Democratic Women's Association, Joint Women's Programme, NFIW, All India Women's Conference and the YWCA.