Women Reservation Bill Debate Today: Sonia Gandhi To Lead Congress
Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi will lead the party”s charge in the debate on the Women”s Reservation Bill in Lok Sabha today.
The Union government introduced the bill named “Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam”, which reserves 33% of seats for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, on Tuesday. The Bill will be taken up for discussion on Wednesday when the House meets at 11 am.
The bill, named Women’s Reservation Bill, or The Constitution (One Hundred and Eighth Amendment) Bill, was introduced to Rajya Sabha initially in 2008 by the then Manmohan Singh-led UPA government. The Rajya Sabha passed it in 2010 but failed to reach in Lok Sabha and eventually lapsed.
It was also one of the key poll promises of the BJP during both the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday urged members of both houses of Parliament to pass the bill unanimously, asserting that it would further strengthen Indian democracy.
“On this historic occasion in the new Parliament building, as the first proceeding of the House, the beginning of all the Parliamentarians opening gateways for women power is being done with this crucial decision”, said Mr Modi.
“Taking forward our resolve of women-led development, our government is bringing an important constitutional amendment bill. The bill is aimed at expanding the membership of women in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’ will further empower our democracy”, he added.
The list of speakers who will debate on behalf of the BJP includes Nirmala Sitharaman, Smriti Irani, Bharti Pawar, Aparajit Sarangi, Sunita Duggal and Diya Kumari.
Union Cabinet had cleared the bill on Monday and proposed the same in the Lok Sabha at the new parliament building on Tuesday.
The statement of purpose of the bill states the extreme importance of women participation in policy making that will lead the goal of making India a developed country by 2047.
Congress said on Monday that they welcome the move to pass the bill as they have been demanding it for so long.
“We welcome the Union Cabinet decision reportedly coming forward and look forward to the details of the Bill. This could have been thoroughly discussed in the all-party meeting before the special session and a consensus could have been reached instead of behind-the-scenes politics”, said Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Monday.
To Read More About The Bill
- Women Reservation Bill: All You Need To Know
- Women’s Reservation Bill: Wait Is Still Not Over?
- “Opening Gateways For Women Power”: PM Modi On Women Reservation Bill
- “It Is Ours, Apna Hei”, Sonia Gandhi On Women’s Reservation Bill
The opposition also termed the Bill as an “election jumla” and raised questions over the lack of OBC reservation and implementation timeline.
“Why was this Bill not passed in 2010? Because it was a consensus among the ones who were opposing the Bill that it is a hollow bill until you give it a rainbow framework”, said Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Manoj Jha to news agency ANI.
He also added that the bill gets its meaning until OBC, ST and SC categories are included in it. He also criticised the unclear situation prevailing around the bill and its implementation saying that the “interesting thing is that there is no clarity on when it will be implemented…This is a post-dated commitment from somebody who has failed”.
#WATCH | On Women”s Reservation Bill, RJD MP Manoj Jha says, “Why was this Bill not passed in 2010? Because it was a consensus among the ones who were opposing the Bill that it is a hollow bill until you give it a rainbow framework. Meaning until you include OBC, ST and SC in it.… pic.twitter.com/dfhufXlpE4
— ANI (@ANI) September 20, 2023
Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal termed the Women”s Reservation Bill as a “big decision” and a “progressive law”.
VIDEO | “Such a big decision, such a progressive law. Do they (opposition) still have an objection?” says Union Law Minister @arjunrammeghwal in response to media query on opposition questioning the implementation of Women”s Reservation Bill. pic.twitter.com/aPKnzwcvdp
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 20, 2023
The proposed law promises a 33% quota for women in parliament and state legislatures, but this may not come into force until 2029, reported NDTV.
According to them, the women”s quota can only be implemented after the first delimitation or redrawing of constituencies after the Bill becomes law, which is likely to happen in 2027, since constituency redrawing only occurs after the next census.
