BJP's Dilip Ghosh hails women's reservation, plans rally in Kharagpur

West Bengal BJP leader Dilip Ghosh announced a women's rally in Kharagpur to thank PM Modi for the women's reservation bill. He also slammed TMC MP Saugata Roy's opposition to the Delimitation Bill, a point of contention in Parliament.

BJP Plans Women's Rally, Slams TMC on Delimitation

West Bengal BJP leader Dilip Ghosh on Friday said that the women in the party will hold a rally in Kharagpur to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, which provides for 33 per cent reservation to women legislators. The BJP candidate from Kharagpur Sadar told reporters, "We want to thank PM Modi. A rally will be held by women in Kharagpur today to thank him. Women and the country will not forgive those who oppose this Bill."

He slammed TMC MP Saugata Roy for opposing the Delimitation Bill, 2026 and said, "He doesn't need to think about South India. Opposing this is just politics."

Earlier on Thursday, Saugata Roy said that the Opposition parties will vote against the delimitation in Parliament. He flagged that the delimitation process may affect the representation of southern states in the Lok Sabha. "We are against it. All Opposition parties are opposing it. We will also vote against it. It is not yet clear what the government wants, but this is a bad policy. The southern Indian states will be affected by it," Roy said.

Lekhi Calls for Implementation of Women's Quota

Former Union Minister and BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi called it the right time to bring amendments to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, to operationalise the two-thirds reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures. She said, "I thank the Prime Minister and the Parliament for passing the Women's Reservation Bill. This is a historic moment of unity, but the real challenge will be in its implementation. History shows that women, despite their vital role in India's freedom struggle--from the INA's Rani Jhansi Regiment to Gandhi's satyagraha--were sidelined in power structures after independence."

"Women's representation in Parliament has remained minimal, averaging only around 17 per cent. After nearly 80 years of independence, it became necessary to create a system to ensure participation. The Bill has failed six times before, but now the right time has come, and the Prime Minister has ensured its passage. I urge all parties to rise above politics and support this bill," Lekhi added.

Heated Debate in Lok Sabha

This comes after a heated debate in the Lok Sabha over the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026, the Delimitation Bill, 2026, and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The Opposition MPs raised concern over the constitutional amendment, to conduct the delimitation and increase the number of seats in the Lok Sabha to 850, based on the 2011 census. The opposition alleged that the proposed legislation would shrink the representation of southern states in the House.

Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra urged the Centre to implement the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, reserving one-third seats for women in the Lok Sabha, on the basis of the current 543 seats. KC Venugopal referred to the Bills as a move to "sabotage democracy."

Amit Shah Assures Southern States

However, Union Minister Amit Shah assured that the representation of the southern states would not be affected by delimitation. Presenting numbers, Shah noted, "If we listen to the entire narrative created for the South, then out of the 543 seats created by you, 129 MPs currently sit in this House, which is approximately 23.76 per cent. In the new House, 195 MPs will be sitting here, and their power will be 23.97 per cent."

Shah said Karnataka has 28 seats, and 5.15 per cent of the 543 seats in the House, and after the passage of the bill, the number of Karnataka MPs will increase from 28 to 42, and the percentage in the Lok Sabha will increase to 5.44. "Karnataka will not suffer any loss at all. Andhra Pradesh has 25 seats, which is 4.60 per cent. After the passage of the bill, the number of MPs will increase from 25 to 38, which will be 4.65 per cent," he said.

"Tamil Nadu has 39 seats, which is 7.18 per cent. After the passage of the bill, the number of MPs will be 59, and their percentage in the new House of 816 will be 7.23 per cent. Tamil Nadu will also suffer no loss. Keralam has 20 seats, which is 3.68 per cent. After the passage of the bill, the number of MPs will be 30, and their percentage in the new House will be 3.67 per cent," he added. (ANI)

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