Bhopal, April 27: The Madhya Pradesh Assembly on Monday passed a government resolution to grant 33 per cent reservation to women in legislative bodies after completing the delimitation exercise, in the absence of MLAs of the main opposition Congress who staged a walkout.
Replying to the day-long debate on the issue during the one-day special session of the assembly, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav accused the Congress of adopting a chronic negative attitude towards women’s empowerment.
He said that the Congress party has insulted women, alleging that a female Prime Minister of Congress, apparently referring to Indira Gandhi, killed women’s rights and stabbed women’s aspirations in the back.
On the contrary, after coming to power, the BJP not only restored women’s rights but also enhanced their respect by appointing them to positions of power, he said.
Later, the Assembly passed a government resolution for overall development and the empowerment of women by granting a 33 per cent (one-third) reservation in Parliament and the State Assemblies by voice vote, in the absence of Congress members who staged a walkout in protest.
Yadav said the BJP raised its voice for women’s rights through the Constitutional amendment to the Nari Shakti Vandan Act, but opposition parties, including the Congress, stole their rights, and half the country’s population will not forgive them for this.
Challenging the Congress’s demand to implement 33 per cent reservation in the current situation, he said that no one can pass the Nari Shakti Vandan Act without amending the delimitation.
The one-day special session was convened after the Constitution Amendment Bill to implement 33 per cent reservation for women was defeated in the Lok Sabha. (PTI)
