Now Reading: Rahul Gandhi, Kiren Rijiju clash over women’s reservation Bill conditions
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Rahul Gandhi, Kiren Rijiju clash over women’s reservation Bill conditions
Rahul Gandhi, Kiren Rijiju clash over women’s reservation Bill conditions
Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday challenged Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to support the Women's Reservation Bill 'unconditionally' after Rahul posted a video calling for greater freedom of expression for women.…
The Story in Brief
Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju on Saturday challenged Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to support the Women's Reservation Bill 'unconditionally' after Rahul posted a video calling for greater freedom of expression for women. Rahul countered by noting the Bill, the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, was already passed by Parliament in 2023 with Congress support. He questioned why the Centre now wants to link its implementation to the delimitation exercise, which would redraw constituency boundaries based on the next census.
The exchange highlights a deadlock: the law provides 33% reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state assemblies but ties it to delimitation. The opposition wants the link removed so the quota can take effect without waiting for a census and the constitutional amendment required for delimitation. Rijiju, on his part, accused Rahul of a change of heart on women's issues and urged unconditional backing.
The Indian Opinion
Both sides are playing word games instead of fixing the real blockage. The Women's Reservation Bill was passed unanimously in 2023, yet the government links its implementation to delimitation, a census-dependent exercise that could take years. Congress opposed the link from the start, not the Bill itself. Accusing each other of conditions merely distracts from one concrete test: will the government bring a separate amendment to delink reservation from delimitation before the next census? That will show who truly wants it implemented.
Sources (2): timesofindia.indiatimes.com, timesnownews.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
