Want 50 per cent women CMs in Congress ruled states: Rahul Gandhi
Kota, Oct 25 : Pushing for the participation of more women across various levels in the Congress, Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said he would like half his party's chief ministers in the country to be women in the next five to seven years.
The BJP and the RSS think women should not go out of their houses while the Congress promotes women, the Congress president said at the state level convention of Mahila Congress here.
"This is the difference between BJP and Congress. BJP and RSS say that women should not be progressive and should not go out of the houses. You will not find a single woman in RSS meetings. They (BJP) have an organisation of women but that organisation does not take decisions and the decision is taken there by the men, Gandhi said.
He said that chief minister in the BJP ruled Rajasthan is a woman but her thoughts are not for women.
Gandhi said his aim is to give women a suitable representation in the party's organization .
"I have taken the decision that I will promote the participation of women in the organisation and at the level of zila parishad, pradhan and then at the level of MLA and MP. After that I want that in next 5 to 7 years, half of our chief ministers in the country should be women, he said.
As the Congress chief, Gandhi said, his role may be that of a "judge" in the party but he would be willing to be the "lawyer" of women in order to promote them and to enhancement their presence in the organisation.
He said that winnability should indeed be a criteria in deciding for a candidate in election but women too can win.
"I want that when I read out the list of leaders at such programmes, at least 30-40 per cent should be of women in every state, he said, while telling the members of the mahila Congress that he was not giving any gift but was giving them their right.
Woman Congress national president Sushmita Dev, state chief of party's women wing Rehana Riyaj, PCC president Sachin Pilot, former chief minister Ashok Gehlot, and other leaders of the party were present on the occasion.
Manvendra Singh, the senior ex BJP leader and a prominent Rajput face in the state who recently joined Congress in Jaisalmer was also present on the stage.
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Another North Goa nightclub sealed; Kejriwal says corruption led to fire tragedy
Panaji (PTI): As part of a crackdown against tourist establishments violating laws and safety norms in the aftermath of the Arpora fire tragedy, Goa authorities on Saturday sealed a renowned club at Vagator and revoked the fire department NOC of another club.
Cafe CO2 Goa, located on a cliff overlooking the Arabian Sea at Vagator beach in North Goa, was sealed. The move came two days after Goya Club, also in Vagator, was shut down for alleged violations of rules.
Elsewhere, campaigning for local body polls, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal said the fire incident at Birch by Romeo Lane nightclub at Arpora, which claimed 25 lives on December 6, happened because the BJP government in the state was corrupt.
An inspection of Cafe CO2 Goa by a state government-appointed team revealed that the establishment, with a seating capacity of 250, did not possess a no-objection certificate (NOC) of the Fire and Emergency Services Department. The club, which sits atop Ozrant Cliff, also did not have structural stability, the team found.
The Fire and Emergency Services on Saturday also revoked the NOC issued to Diaz Pool Club and Bar at Anjuna as the fire extinguishers installed in the establishment were found to be inadequate, said divisional fire officer Shripad Gawas.
A notice was issued to Nitin Wadhwa, the partner of the club, he said in the order.
Campaigning at Chimbel village near Panaji in support of his party's Zilla Panchayat election candidate, Aam Aadmi Party leader Kejriwal said the nightclub fire at Arpora happened because of the "corruption of the Pramod Sawant-led state government."
"Why this fire incident happened? I read in the newspapers that the nightclub had no occupancy certificate, no building licence, no excise licence, no construction licence or trade licence. The entire club was illegal but still it was going on," he said.
"How could it go on? Couldn't Pramod Sawant or anyone else see it? I was told that hafta (bribe) was being paid," the former Delhi chief minister said.
A person can not work without bribing officials in the coastal state, Kejriwal said, alleging that officers, MLAs and even ministers are accepting bribes.
