Women Police Officers, Relational Work and the Pursuit of Inclusion in India

• In Event: Comparative Perspectives on Bureaucracy in the Global South

Abstract

Programmatic efforts to combat gender inequality within bureaucracies have centered on diversity management and demographic representation of women. Yet, disparities between men and women persist and achieving an inclusive work environment remains elusive. How do women entering a public institution pursue inclusion in practice, especially in a context of patriarchy? To answer this question, I theorize inclusion as a relational process, recognizing that women can experience tensions between their social identities and obligations as women and their professional aspirations. I argue that managing such tensions is a form of relational work, which involves leveraging social ties and interpersonal relations (e.g., with family members, friends, coworkers and supervisors) while seeking equal status on the job. The argument is developed through field-based evidence from police agencies in Madhya Pradesh, India, where women have historically occupied a small minority (less than 10%) of the police force. Recently, the police in MP adopted hiring quotas, allocating 33% of seats to women. For this study, a cohort of women officers hired under this quota were shadowed over a period of 18 months, with semi-structured interviews and observations conducted in multiple field sites. Women officers are found to perform relational work to overcome gender disparities, which helps them secure growth opportunities, meaning and recognition for their work. However, the results of their efforts are often inconsistent and contingent on support from senior officers. Relational work is thus shown to create possibilities as well as burdens for women, rendering gender-based inclusion in the police an ongoing and incomplete process.

Author

• Akshay Mangla, University of Oxford