Lucknow: Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati on Wednesday welcomed the decision to provide 33 percent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, but demanded a separate quota within it for women from Dalit and Other Backward Classes.
Addressing a press conference, Mayawati said her party has consistently advocated 50 percent reservation for women in legislatures.
She said that while the BSP supports the proposed 33 percent quota as a step towards improvement, it is equally important to ensure representation for marginalised sections among women.
The BSP supremo also targeted the Indian National Congress, alleging that it had not taken concrete steps to introduce women’s reservation during its time in power. She accused the party of attempting to stall the reform now by raising new issues.
Reiterating her party’s stand, she said the BSP supports the decision in principle but will continue to press for sub-categorisation to protect the interests of Dalit and OBC women.
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Referring to the birth anniversary of B. R. Ambedkar observed across the country on Monday, Mayawati said she paid tributes to the architect of the Constitution.
She also criticised other political parties for what she described as attempts to woo Dalit voters by adopting symbols associated with the BSP. She said several parties have recently used the colour blue in their programmes to attract Dalits, but asserted that the community remains aligned with the BSP’s ideology and such efforts would not succeed.
