'Women's Reservation Not A Political Issue For BJP': Amit Shah Tells Lok Sabha

Amit Shah said that the BJP is not doing any politics on the Bill since it is seriously concerned about the welfare of women in this country.

NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said that the Women's Reservation is not a “political issue” for the ruling BJP but it is about "recognition. Shah said this while addressing the ongoing debate on the Women's Reservation Bill introduced by the Centre in Lok Sabha earlier on Wednesday. Shah stated that the BJP is not doing any politics on the Bill since it is seriously concerned about the welfare of women in this country. 

For some parties, women's empowerment can be a political issue, while for others, it can be a tool to win elections. But for the BJP and PM Modi, women's empowerment is not a political issue, it's a matter of recognition, the Union Home Minister said in Lok Sabha.

Highlighting several women-centric initiatives taken by the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, the Home Minister said, "Our government has provided 100 million LPG connections to women, and constructed 40 million houses."

While referring to the 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' campaign, Shah said it has improved the sex ratio and the dropout rate of women from education has drastically reduced. The Union Home Minister told the lawmakers that nearly 70% of Jan Dhan accounts are under women's name and all the money allotted for various schemes now goes into the accounts of women.

Shah also assured the Lower House that the moment this Bill is passed, 1/3 of the seats in Lok Sabha and all state assemblies will be reserved for the women of India.

Lauding PM Modi, Shah recalled when PM Modi resigned from the post of CM of Gujarat, he donated all his income to the education of the daughters of Class III and IV employees of Gujarat Sachivalay - this itself shows his unflinching commitment towards the daughters and women of this country. 

Continuing his speech, the Home Minister said, "This is the fifth attempt to bring the Women's quota bill. From Devegowda to Manmohan Singh, four attempts were made to bring this bill,'' and sought to know ''what was the reason this bill was not passed?"

While urging the Lok Sabha and all the political parties to pass the Women's Reservation Bill with unanimity, Amit Shah said that the BJP wants to ensure the participation of women in policy-making. Stating that there are 3 categories of MPs - General, SC, and ST, Shah assured that there will be 33% reservation for women in each category after the bill is cleared.

Dismissing concerns expressed by the Opposition parties, Shah said the Delimitation Commission will decide which constituencies are to be reserved for women and that's why the time frame of 2026 is mentioned in the bill. Transparency is the reason behind delimitation, he added.

"Whether you support it or not, it (Women’s Reservation Bill) will come after 2029. Census and Delimitation will be done immediately after elections are held and the day will come soon when seats will be reserved for women (in Parliament),'' the Home Minister said. "Not supporting the bill will not bring the reservation any faster, therefore supporting it is the best way to go ahead,'' Amit Shah appealed to the MPs in Lok Sabha.

The Lok Sabha is currently discussing the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam Bill which was tabled by the Centre for discussion at 11 AM earlier today, after the proceedings of the House began. The 128th Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2023 seeks to reserve 33 per cent seats in Lok Sabha and all state Assemblies for women.

Arjun Ram Meghwal kicked off the discussion on the Bill that seeks to bring in 33% reservation for women in the lower House and all Assemblies. He stated that the Bill was an important step in women’s empowerment and “shows the way to the world”. The Bill will be taken up in Rajya Sabha on September 21, government sources said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had earlier made a strong pitch for the women's reservation bill saying that his government is committed to ensuring that the 'Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam' aimed at expanding women's participation in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies becomes a law, as he urged MPs of both houses of parliament to pass the bill unanimously.

While several parties have welcomed the bill, AIMIM MP Asaduddin Owaisi has expressed his disapproval of the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam’ (women reservation bill) saying that he is against the bill as it does not include the quota for women from the Muslim and OBC communities.

Opposing the Women's Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha, the AIMIM leader said, 'The Bill is against the Muslims of India. It deceives the Muslim Community.''

The Hyderabad MP further said, "The Modi government wants to increase representation only for 'savarana' women. This bill will affect the representation of the OBC and Muslim women." "This is a woman deception bill, anti-OBC, anti-Muslim bill," he said in his speech.