Sule reminds PM Modi: Opposition voted for women's quota bill in 2023

Following PM Modi's appeal for support on the women's quota, NCP's Supriya Sule said the opposition already voted for the bill in 2023. Congress leaders questioned the delay, linking it to the government's delimitation agenda.

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi's appeal to all political parties to support women's reservation in state assemblies and Lok Sabha, NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) MP Supriya Sule on Saturday clarified that the opposition voted in favour of the women's reservation bill in 2023 that led to its passage in both houses of Parliament.

'We Have Already Passed It': Supriya Sule

Sule said the bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament in 2023 with the Opposition voting in its favour. "The Women's Reservation Bill was passed in 2023. We have already passed it: With one voice, one vote, together. This bill was passed in both Houses simultaneously," Sule told reporters here.

When asked who PM Modi was referring to with his "dimagi Naxal" remarks during his Independence Day address from the Red Fort, Sule said, "I don't know about that. You will have to ask the Honourable Prime Minister."

Congress Questions Delay, Links it to Delimitation

Earlier in the day, Congress MP Rajani Patil said PM Modi has realised that farmers and young people across the country have begun opposing his government. She claimed that this realisation was reflected in the announcements by the government in their support.

Amid PM Modi's appeal to the opposition for extending support to the constitutional amendment bill for the implementation of women reservation, Patil said that the quota for women was the idea of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. She argued that the opposition was opposing the linking of implementation of the women quota with the delimitation exercise. "I think the PM must have understood that the youth and farmers of the country are going against him now. This is why he is talking the way he is. Rahul Gandhi has been saying that for a while now. Women's reservation is the baby of Rajiv Gandhi. We are opposing the delimitation they want to do in the garb of women reservation," Patil told ANI.

Moreover, Congress MP Jebi Mather questioned the government's intentions to implement the women's reservation, suggesting that the delay was linked to the government's agenda of carrying out the delimitation exercise. She alleged that the non-implementation of the quota was part of the government's broader push for delimitation. "If PM Modi and his govt are serious about women's reservation, it should have been implemented by now. It has not been implemented yet because they have their own agenda. They want to get delimitation done under the garb of the women's reservation bill. This is not acceptable. Congress is the party that brought the women's reservation bill," Mather said.

PM Modi's Independence Day Appeal

In his address at Red Fort today, the PM urged all political parties to come forward and ensure 33 per cent representation for women in State Legislative Assemblies and the Lok Sabha. The Prime Minister said women's leadership is essential for shaping the country's policies. He highlighted the contribution of women representatives in Panchayats, Municipalities and Municipal Corporations and said the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam was passed in Parliament with the aim of strengthening women's representation in politics. (ANI)

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