Women's Reservation Bill will inspire women around world: Kalvakuntla Kavitha
London (PTI): Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader Kalvakuntla Kavitha said the Women's Reservation Bill will inspire many women around the world to come forward in public life and called on women across continents to mobilise around the issue.
During an interaction organised by the think tank Bridge India in London on Friday night, the BRS Member of the Legislative Council (MLC) addressed a diaspora audience at Central Hall Westminster near the Houses of Parliament on the topic of Gender Equality in India's Political Representation'.
The daughter of Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao, who was virtually mobbed by the cheering diaspora crowds, highlighted the progress made in her own state that is leading the way in the representation of women in politics.
"We are the world's most populous nation, and we are about 70 crore women; if a very positive change were to happen to the women of our nation, I believe the world should know because that will inspire many, many, many more women to come forward in public life, to become active participants in policy making," Kavitha told PTI with reference to her London tour.
"This bill, I'm very confident, will enable that to happen to the women of our nation, India, and India's progress will see more and more participation of women, that is the hope," the 45-year-old politician said.
The Women's Reservation Bill, which seeks to provide 33 per cent reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, received the Parliamentary nod on September 21. President Droupadi Murmu gave her assent to the bill on September 28.
Asked about stronger representation of women within political parties in the country, Kavitha admitted that parties have traditionally been slow in addressing the matter satisfactorily.
"I would say India is a much younger democracy, which is 75 years old. There are many democracies across the globe which are 200 years old or more who have still not been able to reach the extent and level of women participation that we have reached today," she said.
"But that being said, the parties have to take the onus on themselves to make sure more and more women come in. And obviously, it's not happening, so it is for the Election Commission to step in. It is for more laws to be put in place to protect the places for women," she noted.
During her charged address that drew applause and cheers from the crowd, Kavitha said it "pained" her to state that inequality in public life is a reality around the world. She traced the journey of the Women's Reservation Bill that she had been campaigning for and was passed in the Lok Sabha last month from former prime minister Deve Gowda in 1996 to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2023.
"I sincerely thank all of them from the bottom of my heart for making this bill a reality. This is not just politics, but this is the respect these people have shown to the women of this great nation," she said.
She added, "When I say Women's Reservation Bill, it is not only to make 181 women members of Parliament, but it is about billions and billions of women. When we talk about women, countries don't matter, there are no borders."
"Across the globe, I don't know how men managed to subjugate us for centuries. Now, the time has come that women across continents should connect, and should take up these issues. Today, if India has this bill and some other country does not, I think it is the duty of Indian women to go help our sisters there," she said.
During some light-hearted moments in her hard-hitting speech, she acknowledged her very "strong opinions" and cautioned men to get used to hearing many more strong opinions from "our sisters".
She also referenced the Koh-i-Noor diamond, which has a connection to Telangana, given its roots in the Golconda mines. The MLC said while the discussion over the return of the infamous diamond to India will "go on forever", "at least give us back Vijay Mallya" referencing the former Kingfisher Airlines chief based in the UK and wanted in India on fraud and money laundering charges.
Earlier on Friday, Kavitha commenced her tour to the UK with a visit to the Ambedkar Museum in north London and spoke of how she drew great inspiration from the principles of the architect of the Indian Constitution in her fight for gender equality.
MLC Kavitha's itinerary in the UK includes engagements with Indian diaspora groups, discussions on collaborative initiatives and participation in events to foster cultural exchange between the two countries.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
