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The article offers an analysis of political selection in constituencies reserved for women in the southern areas of India, where gender disparity is rampant, and on the impact of women's reservations on their performance as leaders. The inquiry is done through finding evidence from two potential channels for tokenism including the notion that tokenism does not appear to be effective when the chosen women are weak and another on the belief that tokenism does not work if women are selected because of the influence of their respective spouse. The investigation reveals that women's reservations have no notable effect on women's participation in electoral rolls and channels of tokenism have been contrasted by the claim that women presidents are not weak.

Objectives: To investigate differences in reported open defecation between a question about latrine use or open defecation for every household member and a household-level question., Setting: Rural India is home to most of the world's open defecation. India's Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) 2015-2016 estimates that 54% of households in rural India defecate in the open. This measure is based on a question asking about the behaviour of all household members in one question. Yet, studies in rural India find substantial open defecation among individuals living in households with latrines, suggesting that household-level questions underestimate true open defecation., Participants: In 2018, we randomly assigned latrine-owning households in rural parts of four Indian states to receive one of two survey modules measuring sanitation behaviour. 1215 households were asked about latrine use or open defecation individually for every household member. 1216 households were asked the household-level question used in India's DHS: what type of facility do members of the household usually use?, Results: We compare reported open defecation between households asked the individual-level questions and those asked the household-level question. Using two methods for comparing open defecation by question type, the individual-level question found 20-21 (95% CI 16 to 25 for both estimates) percentage points more open defecation than the household-level question, among all households, and 28-29 (95% CI 22 to 35 for both estimates) percentage points more open defecation among households that received assistance to construct their latrines., Conclusions: We provide the first evidence that individual-level questions find more open defecation than household-level questions. Because reducing open defecation in India is essential to meeting the Sustainable Development Goals, and exposure to open defecation has consequences for child mortality and development, it is essential to accurately monitor its progress., Trial Registration Number: Registry for International Development Impact Evaluations (5b55458ca54d1)., Competing Interests: Competing interests: None declared., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2019. Re-use permitted under CC BY. Published by BMJ.)