Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Where there is a right, there is a remedy, said minister Krishna Gaur in support of Nari Shakti Vandan Sankalp resolution in the state Assembly on Monday.
The state government had called a one-day special Assembly session on Nari Shakti Vandan Sankalp on Monday. BJP MLAs criticised the Congress party for not supporting the women’s bill, while the Congress claimed that since the bill was passed in the Parliament in 2023, there was no need to bring it to the Assembly.
Minister Gaur further said that the state government always worked for betterment of women in the state. About 1.25 crore women have been covered under Ladli Behna Yojana and there are 52 lakh beneficiaries under Ladli Laxmi Yojana.
She gave an example from Mahabharat. “Krishna asked Kauravas to give five villages to Pandavas but Kauravas denied them and no one was left after the war. The messenger of Krishna, Mohan, has brought the resolution. You (Congress) should accept it,” Gaur said.
BJP MLA and state party president Hemant Khandelwal spoke on importance of delimitation in the country. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi brought the resolution so that India would stand with countries like Rwanda in Africa where 60% of women are in politics without reservation. In Sweden, the figure is 45%, in Finland it is 44% and it is 42% in Spain.
He said that in India, one Member of Parliament is the leader of 30 lakh people but in countries like the US, the figure is seven lakhs, in UK, it is 70,000, it is 25,000 in Malta.
Even Pakistan has one MP for five lakh people. He demanded to know whether a MP can do justice to 30 lakh voters. He said that in 1971, delimitation was frozen and since then the population has increased threefold. Therefore, it is necessary to increase the number of Assembly and Parliamentary seats.
Cong hits back
Congress MLA Jhooma Solanki said that the women’s reservation bill should not become an issue for remaining in power. “BJP always asks what has the Congress party done for women. India’s first woman Prime Minister was Indira Gandhi, first woman President was Pratibha Patil and first woman Governor was Sarojini Naidu.
First woman Lok Sabha Speaker was Meira Kumar. Indira Gandhi also served as first woman finance minister. All these women rose to prominence on the strength of their own merit and fulfilled their roles with utmost energy and dedication,” she said.
