The NCP on Monday took a dig at the Uttar Pradesh government's draft bill proposing the two children norm, with Maharashtra minister Nawab Malik saying the Yogi Adityanath government should bring a ''no children'' policy which will benefit many leaders of BJP and RSS who don't have children.
The UP government's draft bill on population control says people having more than two children will be debarred from contesting local bodies polls, applying for government jobs or receiving any kind of subsidy. The draft bill also seeks to prohibit promotions in government jobs for such people, while offering incentives to those limiting their children to two.
Speaking to reporters, NCP spokesperson and Minority Affairs Minister Nawab Malik said the "UP population policy" had created confusion.
''Instead of two children, the policy should be of more than two (children) as BJP leaders often say. Maharashtra already had a rule which says that people with more than two children cannot contest local bodies elections or avail of government benefits. Several leaders in BJP and RSS don't have children. Apart from Maharashtra, the two-child policy is being implemented in several other states. Ideally, the Yogi government should have a 'no children'' policy which will benefit many BJP leaders," Malik said.
BJP's Sakshi Maharaj often speaks of the need to give birth to more children, he said, adding the Yogi government should frame its policy accordingly.
On Sunday, UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath unveiled a policy aimed at stabilising the population in the northern state and reducing maternal and infant deaths in a time-bound manner.
The Uttar Pradesh Population Policy 2021-2030, unveiled on the occasion of World Population Day, also aims at bringing down the gross fertility rate among women to 2.1 by 2026 and to 1.9 by 2030
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