New Delhi: PM Narendra Modi will address the Lok Sabha on Thursday on the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam as Parliament begins an April 16-18 special session to take up an amendment to the Women’s Reservation Act, 2023.
The government has allocated 18 hours in Lok Sabha and 10 hours in Rajya Sabha for discussions. Even as the Opposition demanded that the issue of women’s quota be delinked from delimitation, the Centre said “wrong delimitation figures” were being deliberately used to mislead people.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said, “Some people are trying to mislead the south Indian states on women’s reservation by providing wrong delimitation figures.” He added that “there should be no politics in giving reservations to women in Lok Sabha and legislative assemblies.”
He said “all political parties are united for Nari Shakti.” The Centre’s position had also become clear earlier when Modi, addressing a rally in Uttarakhand on Tuesday, said, “After four decades of anticipation, Parliament passed the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam and this ensured 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies.”
He added that “all parties had come forward to support this important law” and said “it should be implemented now.”
Modi also said the Lok Sabha elections would be held in 2029 and described it as the “sentiment of the nation” that they should take place under the new law. He urged all political parties to “come together and advance this work.”
On Monday, he had expressed hope that women’s reservation would be implemented through “dialogue, cooperation, and participation”. Meanwhile, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said the Delimitation Commission would consult all political parties, rejecting concerns raised by the INDIA bloc leaders over the process.
Speaking in Purba Bardhaman in West Bengal, Sitharaman criticised Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over her remarks that delimitation would “divide” Bengal. She said, “Is she suggesting that women will have to wait any longer, and she would not cooperate.
Let her say that openly. I challenge her. Is she trying to stop reservations for women and putting fear in the minds of people in Bengal?”
On the Centre’s proposal to increase the number of Lok Sabha seats to 850, Sitharaman clarified that it was the maximum limit. “That is a cap, maximum limit. There will be a delimitation committee for every state, and it will talk to all parties then only a call will be taken. So why is the fear?” she said.
She also criticised Banerjee, saying, “You have a fear of the SIR, the Election Commission, Parliament. You have a fear about every law which is passed.
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Whereas you do not do anything here. Even if money is sitting in Delhi, you do not use it. Mamata Banerjee, please say what is your idea of governance?”
