The term ‘political participation’ has a very broad meaning. It is not only related to ‘Right to Vote’, but simultaneously it is related to participation in leadership, decision making process, political activism, political consciousness, etc. Women in India participate in voting, run the public offices and political parties at lower levels more than men. The Indian Constitution has been committed to introduce socio-economic and political transformation. The initiatives of empowering women and the marginalized sections are the reflection of its democratic spirit that can be noticed from a number of amendments in these fields. The 73rd Constitutional Amendment Act is an important landmark in the history of Indian women’s participation in the formation of democratic institutions at grassroots level. The most significant aspect is that the gender representation in the decision-making has been taken into consideration. But most of the tribal women participate in the electoral process as voter. There are less aware about the Panchayati Raj Act of 73rd Amendment in the Constitution of India. They know that every village have a Panchayat which works for the development for the village but they do not know the various power, works etc. of the Panchayats. They have a very little knowledge about the reservation of seats for women in Gram Panchayats. Hence, through this paper the researcher would like to bring out the awareness level of the Toda tribal women regarding their political rights and bring out some suggestions which will increase their level of awareness.
