God chose me for this: PM bats for women's reservation bill to be passed at special session
The BJP’s move to table the women's reservation bill now is significant, as the party is trying to get the support of women voters ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls
Ending days of speculation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (September 19) informed the Members of Parliament (MPs) in the new Parliament building that the Union government will table the crucial Nari Shakti Vandana Adhiniyam (women’s reservation bill) in the ongoing special session of Parliament.
Addressing the first sitting of Lok Sabha in the new Parliament building, Modi appealed to all political parties to ensure that the decision to pass the constitutional amendment to reserve seats for women in Parliament and state assemblies be passed unanimously.
“The date of September 19 will be historic. I would like to inform the House that the cabinet has approved a bill for reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies. I would like to move a constitutional amendment to bring Nari Shakti Vandana Adhiniyam. I would also urge all Members of Parliament (MPs) of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha to pass this bill unanimously,” PM said in his first speech in the new Parliament building.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s move is significant as the party is trying to garner the support of the women voters of the country ahead of the Lok Sabha elections in April-May 2024. Senior BJP leaders also believe that the decision to reserve seats for women would also play a decisive role in favour of the party in the upcoming elections in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Telangana, and Mizoram later this year.
“This is not the first time that there has been discussion on the women’s reservation bill. This discussion has been going on for a long time. It also happened several times during Atal Bihari Vajpayee's regime when attempts were made to bring the women's reservation bill several times. But we did not have the numbers in the house. It was our dream to bring the women’s reservation bill, but it remained incomplete. It seems God has chosen me and given me this opportunity to accomplish this. Our government is bringing a new bill today on women's participation in Parliament,” Modi added.
Although PM Modi did not give details of the Nari Shakti Vandana Adhiniyam Bill that will be tabled in Lok Sabha, he said that the decisions taken by the MPs will decide the fate of political parties in the upcoming elections.
“Elections are not going to happen immediately, there is still time for elections to take place. I strongly believe that the decisions taken today and the actions of the MPs will decide who sits on this side and who will sit on that side,” Modi said while referring to the Treasury and the Opposition parties.
Women-ledModi further said that the Union government was committed to the passage of the women’s reservation bill and that the Union government was working towards women-led development in the country.
“It is my commitment that there will be women-led development in the country, and I am committed to the passage of the constitutional amendment that will allow reservation of seats in Parliament for women,” Modi said in the new building of Parliament.