Bharat Rashtra Samithi led by Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who has been vehemently opposing every decision of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre, will have no option but to support the women’s reservation bill when it is introduced in the Parliament, now.
BRS MLC and KCR’s daughter Kalvakuntla Kavitha on Tuesday welcomed the Union Cabinet’s approval for Women’s Reservation Bill on Monday night.
She, however, expressed apprehensions over the intentions of the Modi government, as there was no information about the Bill format.
“We are not sure of the content of the bill and it might create obstacles in the Parliament. I am elated, I am very happy and I am on cloud nine dancing away but also worried a little bit,” Kavita said.
She reiterated that the BRS will support the much-awaited Bill in the Parliament. While there was no official statement on the union Cabinet decisions on Monday evening, speculations were rife over whether it had approved the women’s reservation bill, she said.
Minister of State Prahlad Singh Patel also posted on social media platform X that the Cabinet approved the Women’s Reservation Bill, but deleted the post shortly thereafter.
Further, Kavitha recalled that the BRS government introduced a resolution in the Telangana State Assembly which passed it unanimously urging the Centre to clear the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Parliament.
However, she was apprehensive that there was no clarity on whether the bill to be introduced would be a completely different one.
She said the onus of taking all the political parties into confidence was on the union government, to ensure that there are no last-minute obstacles.
She found fault with the union government for lack of transparency with regard to clearance of the Bill by the union Cabinet, and sought an official statement rather than giving select leaks through the media in this regard.
“We want to know what format this bill is in. Is it in the same format when it was passed by the Rajya Sabha in 2010 or it is in a completely different format,” Kavitha questioned.
She recalled that last time the Bill lapsed due to objections from the OBC community, which wanted the OBC quota within the women’s quota.
Kavitha had recently written letters to leaders of all political parties to support and pass the Women’s Reservation Bill in the special session of the Parliament.
Three days ago, Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao had also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to initiate the necessary legislative process to implement 33 per cent reservations each for women and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in Parliament and State Legislatures.
“As the Women’s Reservation Bill is set to be tabled in Parliament, it is a significant victory for every woman of our nation. I extend my best wishes to all the citizens of our country, both sisters and brothers. With the ruling party holding a clear majority in the Lok Sabha, the passage of this bill should occur smoothly, without any obstacles,” Kavitha posted on X.
“The party made this commitment not once, but twice, in their manifestos, first in 2014 and then in 2019. The only missing piece was the political determination to see it through. Now is the time for the women of this country to take the centre stage in politics, a space they truly deserve. This marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter in strengthening and shaping of our democracy. Now empowered women, empowering India will not be a distant dream,” she added.