Women Reservation Bill must be balanced with Dalit, backward stakes: Akhilesh
Lucknow (PTI): Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav on Tuesday said reservation for women should be a balance of gender justice and social justice and demanded a clarity on share of backward, Dalit, minority, and tribals in the seats set aside.
In a post on X in Hindi, Akhilesh Yadav said, "Women's reservation should be a balance of gender justice and social justice. In this, reservation for backward, Dalit, minority, tribal women should be clear in definite percentage form."
The SP chief's X post came after the Centre on Tuesday introduced a constitutional amendment bill Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam to reserve one-third of seats in Lok Sabha and state assemblies for women, reviving a bill pending for 27 years for want of consensus among parties.
Making it the first bill to be introduced in the new Parliament building, the government said it will enable greater participation of women in policy-making at the state and national level and help achieve the goal of making India a developed country by 2047.
Earlier in the day, SP's chief spokesperson Rajendra Chaudhary demanded the share of Dalit and other oppressed to be provisioned in the reservation.
"As far as this bill is concerned, our stand is how much reservation will the backward get under the bill. We had opposed the bill when it was presented by the Congress-led UPA government, and today, when the BJP is bringing it, we are still not in complete agreement," he told PTI.
"We want justice for women and also want reservation for them. But what would be the quantum of reservation to backwards, tribals, Dalits?" Chaudhary asked. He said a final decision on whether to support the Bill will be taken in Delhi, since senior party leaders Ramgopal Yadav and Dimple Yadav are there.
Mulayam Singh Yadav, the then Samajwadi Party president, had in 2009 opposed the proposal of the Women's Reservation Bill, calling it a "conspiracy" against the politicians who had reached the Lok Sabha through "hard struggle" and warned of a people's movement if the UPA pushes the legislation.
Yadav, whose party was supporting the government then from outside, had backed JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav's contention, who said if the Bill is passed without a consensus, it would tantamount to administering of "poison by force" by the ruling class to those against the Bill as had been done to Greek philosopher Socrates who was forced to drink hemlock on trumped up charges.
Union Minister of State Prahlad Singh Patel had on Monday posted on X that the Cabinet has approved the women's reservation bill, but deleted the post within an hour.
"Only the Modi government had the moral courage to fulfil the demand for women's reservation which was proved by the approval of the cabinet. Congratulations Narendra Modi ji and congratulations to the Modi government," the minister said in the now deleted post on X.
Patel is the Minister of State for Food Processing Industries and Jal Shakti.
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Mamata visits Bhabanipur EVM strong room, warns against counting irregularities
Kolkata (PTI): West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee early Friday warned against any attempt to tamper with the counting process, hours after she visited an EVM strong room in Bhabanipur, alleging possible malpractice.
Banerjee, who emerged around 12:07 am after spending nearly four hours at the counting centre for her Bhabanipur constituency housed in Sakhawat Memorial School in south Kolkata, said only one person would be allowed inside the designated counting area.
"Either the candidate or one agent can stay upstairs. I have also suggested installation of a CCTV camera for the media," she told reporters.
Stressing the need for transparency, she said, "It is essential to maintain transparency. People’s votes must be protected. I rushed here after receiving complaints. The central forces initially did not allow me to enter."
Sounding a stern note ahead of the May 4 counting, she added, "If there is any plan to tamper with the counting process, it will not be tolerated."
On Thursday evening, Banerjee had reached the Bhabanipur Assembly segment counting centre, which houses the strong room for EVMs used in the April 29 polling, citing suspicion of tampering with the machines.
She entered the premises along with her election agent and remained inside for hours, even as Kolkata Mayor and TMC candidate from the Kolkata Port segment Firhad Hakim reached the spot but could not meet her.
"I reached here upon learning that the chief minister has arrived. But I couldn’t meet her since she was already inside the premises, exercising her right as a candidate to visit strong rooms. I wasn’t allowed there. I will not be able to confirm what exactly is transpiring inside," Hakim said.
The development coincided with protests by TMC candidates Kunal Ghosh and Shashi Panja outside the Khudiram Anushilan Kendra in north Kolkata, where they staged a sit-in alleging irregularities and possible tampering of EVMs stored in strong rooms, leading to face-offs between TMC and BJP supporters.
Earlier in a video message, Banerjee had urged party leaders, workers and polling agents to maintain a 24-hour vigil on EVM strong rooms, alleging that the BJP could attempt to tamper with the machines before counting begins.
Her remarks come amid heightened political tension in the state following a fiercely contested Assembly election, with parties closely monitoring arrangements and raising concerns over transparency.
