New Delhi: With the government calling a three-day Parliament Session from April 16 to 18 to discuss the amendment Bill to operationalise the Women’s Reservation Act by the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday told the party’s CWC that it has not received any formal proposal from the government and on the same and it wants to pass an important Constitutional Amendment Bill so that it can claim credit and derive political benefit in the upcoming Assembly elections.
He also blasted the government saying that the “delimitation proposal will have serious consequences, and therefore requires deep and careful deliberation” and added that the Narendra Modi government has convened this Parliament session with political motives. It wants to quickly pass the Constitutional Amendment Bill.
Kharge said it in his opening remarks at the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, party’s highest decision making body.
Addressing the CWC meeting, the Congress chief said, “As you all know, after a long silence, the Modi government has suddenly become active on the issue of women’s reservation. In this context, a session of Parliament is scheduled between April 16 and 18 to discuss the issue of 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies.”
He pointed out that Congress has not received any formal proposal from the government on this matter.
“We have come to know certain details only after reading the article written by the Prime Minister,” he claimed.
Kharge said that in this session, the government wants to pass an important Constitutional Amendment Bill so that “it can claim credit and derive political benefit in the upcoming Assembly elections”.
“According to the information available so far, the government intends to implement women’s reservation from the 2029 elections. Additionally, it plans to increase the number of seats in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies by 50 per cent,” he said.
He also said that the proposal is to increase Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 816. State Assemblies will also see a proportional increase.
“This delimitation proposal will have serious consequences, and therefore requires deep and careful deliberation. The Modi government has convened this Parliament session with political motives. It wants to quickly pass the Constitutional Amendment Bill,” Kharge remarked.
He also highlighted that Congress and the floor leaders of opposition parties had written three times to the Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju requesting that an all-party meeting be convened after April 29, the last day of polling for the West Bengal elections, so that a serious discussion could take place.
“Despite our repeated requests, the government ignored our suggestions in order to change the narrative and gain electoral advantage,” he alleged.
Kharge said, “This amounts to a violation of the Model Code of Conduct. However, we do not expect the Election Commission—which is functioning like a subordinate office of the Home Ministry—to take note of these concerns.”
He also said that this Parliament session has been called at a time when, due to Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, most MPs are busy in their constituencies.
“But this is nothing new for the Modi government. Weakening democracy and taking arbitrary decisions has become its habit, which we have consistently opposed,” he said
Taking a jibe at the Centre, he said that the issue of women’s reservation is an integral part of Congress’s commitment to social justice.
“The Congress party has always been at the forefront of women’s empowerment. We do not need certification from anyone on issues like the welfare of women and weaker sections of society,” Kharge claimed.
He highlighted that the Congress “ensured one-third reservation for women in Panchayati Raj Institutions and urban local bodies”.
“This initiative was started by Rajiv Gandhi ji. The 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments were implemented in 1993 during a Congress government. As a result, today around 1.45 million women are elected representatives in rural and urban local bodies,” Kharge pointed out.
He also recalled the works of Sarojini Naidu and said that history bears witness that even 100 years ago, when women did not even have the right to vote, “the great leader Sarojini Naidu became the first Indian woman President of the Congress”.
“From then to CPP Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, many women leaders have guided our party. Women have played significant roles in Congress governments. The Congress has consistently worked towards women’s reservation and has pushed for it whenever possible. We have continuously put pressure on the Modi government,” he said.
Kharge also said that Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have written several letters. In 2023, during the Hyderabad Congress Working Committee meeting, we had an in-depth discussion on this issue and urged the government to convene a special session to pass the Women’s Reservation Bill.
“On September 23, 2023, while speaking on the Constitutional Amendment Bill, I demanded its immediate implementation in the House. However, the government decided that it would be implemented only after delimitation and the Census. The country is aware of this, which is why several questions are being raised on this issue,” he said.
He said that we have convened this CWC meeting today to understand your views on the proposed amendments and to formulate a concrete strategy for Parliament.
“The proposed amendments could have serious implications for our electoral system,” Kharge said, adding, “Therefore, after this meeting, we will also consult with opposition colleagues to build a collective strategy. We will move forward united.”
While discussing the west Asia conflict involving US, Israel and Iran, Kharge said, “I also want that we discuss the pressure arising from the West Asia crisis and the challenges being faced by millions of people due to it.”
