{"id":555,"date":"2023-09-20T14:33:09","date_gmt":"2023-09-20T18:33:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/lok-sabha-clears-womens-bill-amit-shah-says-empowerment-a-matter-of-principle-not-political-weapon-political-pulse-news\/20\/09\/2023\/"},"modified":"2023-09-20T14:33:09","modified_gmt":"2023-09-20T18:33:09","slug":"lok-sabha-clears-womens-bill-amit-shah-says-empowerment-a-matter-of-principle-not-political-weapon-political-pulse-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/lok-sabha-clears-womens-bill-amit-shah-says-empowerment-a-matter-of-principle-not-political-weapon-political-pulse-news\/20\/09\/2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Lok Sabha clears women\u2019s Bill, Amit Shah says empowerment a matter of principle, not political weapon | Political Pulse News"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n<\/p>\n<p>Clearing the decks for a landmark legislation on <a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/india\/parliament-special-session-live-updates-women-reservation-bill-lok-sabha-8947748\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\"><strong>33% reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state Assemblies<\/strong><\/a>, the Lower House Wednesday passed the <a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/explained\/explained-law\/womens-reservation-bill-what-is-the-road-ahead-before-it-can-be-implemented-8947560\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\"><strong>women\u2019s reservation Bill<\/strong><\/a> \u2013 the Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Sixth Amendment) Bill, 2023 \u2013 with Union Home Minister Amit Shah declaring that \u201cthe empowerment of women is a matter of principle, not a political weapon\u201d for \u201cour leader Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the party\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Wrapping up a discussion on the Bill introduced Tuesday in <a rel=\"noamphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/india\/parliament-monsoon-session-live-updates-rajya-sabha-lok-sabha-8035871\/\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Lok Sabha<\/a>, Shah, in his reply, assured the House of a \u201ctransparent process\u201d to identify the seats to be reserved for women.<\/p>\n<div><\/p>\n<p>Responding to apprehensions of delay in the Bill\u2019s implementation, Shah said the next government will conduct the census and the delimitation exercise immediately after the elections and set in motion the process to make reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state Assemblies a reality.<\/p>\n<p>Describing the Bill, which will be taken to <a rel=\"noamphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/india\/parliament-monsoon-session-live-updates-rajya-sabha-lok-sabha-8035871\/\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Rajya Sabha<\/a> Thursday for its clearance, as a \u201cgood start\u201d, Shah said \u201canything incomplete\u201d could be addressed in the future.<\/p>\n<p>On Opposition demands that the proposed legislation should include a quota for the OBCs, the Home Minister said Parliamentarians are currently elected in three categories \u2013 General, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe \u2013 and the Bill has incorporated a quota for each of them.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Women&#039;s Quota Bill: RaGa Cites Data On Representation Of Indian Secretaries; Amit Shah Retorts\" width=\"768\" height=\"432\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/n72Wu5dQkRQ?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>He said the \u201cdelimitation process\u201d to decide which constituency is to be reserved for women will be \u201ctransparent\u201d and it will be done by a delimitation commission. \u201cIf we do it and <a rel=\"noamphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/elections\/wayanad-lok-sabha-election-results\/\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Wayanad<\/a> (Lok Sabha constituency of Congress leader <a rel=\"noamphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/about\/rahul-gandhi\/\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Rahul Gandhi<\/a>) gets reserved, it would be an issue for you,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He said the delimitation commission would be headed by a retired Supreme Court judge, a representative of the Election Commission and a member each from the political parties. The committee, he said, will take its decisions after visits to the constituencies to ensure the process is fair and transparent.<\/p>\n<p>Hitting back at the Opposition which criticised the government for using the long-pending women\u2019s Bill as a political tool on the eve of elections, he said: \u201cFor our leader Prime Minister <a rel=\"noamphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/about\/narendra-modi\/\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Narendra Modi<\/a> and the party, the empowerment of women is a matter of principle, not a political weapon\u2026 Women\u2019s security, respect and equal participation have been the life force of the government since Prime Minister Modi took oath of office.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Without referring to Rahul Gandhi\u2019s remark that there are only three OBC Secretaries in the Government of India, Shah said, \u201cSome people think secretaries run the country, I think the government does. This government run by the <a rel=\"noamphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/about\/bjp\/\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">BJP<\/a> has 85 OBC MPs which is 29% of the total number of party MPs. Of the party\u2019s 1318 legislators across India, 365, which constitutes 27 %, are OBC MLAs. Around 40% of the BJP MLCs are OBCs\u2026 Congress never made an OBC as the Prime Minister, but the BJP has.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>During the debate, ruling party speakers slammed the Opposition, saying their government in the past brought Bills without the intention to get it cleared and pushed them as \u201clollipops or token\u201d to \u201ceyewash the voters.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The ruling party MPs also said that the provisions of the Constitution regarding census and delimitation had to be included in the Bill to follow the Constitution.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Prime Minister has repeatedly said \u2018<em>yahi samay hai, sahi samay hai<\/em>\u2019 (this is the time, this is the right time), and this Bill has been brought at the right time. What bothers the Opposition is that it is now brought by Prime Minister Modi and the BJP,\u201d Nishikant Dubey, who initiated the debate from the ruling party side, said.<\/p>\n<p>Targeting the Congress which tried to bring the Bill during UPA rule, Dubey said it developed cold feet and had \u201cexcuses\u201d like consensus and quota-within-quota.<\/p>\n<p>Both Dubey and Union Minister Smriti Irani took on the Opposition over the demand for immediate implementation of the Bill, saying the government was just following the Constitutional process.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Women&#039;s Reservation Bill Explained: From Rajiv Gandhi To PM Modi, How Did The Bill Come Into Being?\" width=\"768\" height=\"432\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/RIZ8YgxCkGU?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Reading out provisions of the Constitution regarding census and delimitation to drive home the point that it was necessary to include these in the Bill, Irani asked: \u201cIs it the wish of Opposition leaders that the Constitutional process is not followed? Should we not abide by the Constitution? Is that the position taken by the Opposition parties?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>As Opposition MPs raised questions on the census delay, Dubey cited the Covid pandemic and the lockdown that followed as the reasons. \u201cHow could we do the census during the pandemic? \u2026 Our Home Minister Amit Shah keeps saying that no steps would be taken by this government that is not in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Irani, who described the Bill as Goddess Laxmi taking a Constitutional form, said the BJP, right from its Jana Sangh days, stood for constitutionally-guaranteed reservation for women.<\/p>\n<p>Taking on the Congress which maintained that the Bill was its agenda, Irani said: \u201cSuccess has many fathers and failure has none. So when the Bill was introduced yesterday, some people started saying that it was their Bill\u2026 But I am glad that someone here has clarified that even the 73rd and the 75th Constitutional amendments (related to Panchayati Raj and Rent Tribunals), which were said to have been brought by a certain political family, were also by P V Narasimha Rao.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis government guarantees reservation for 15 years. Congress proposed a reservation for only 10 years. They wanted to snatch the rights of women after 10 years. Article 82 of the Constitution talks about delimitation after the census in 2026. Is it the position of the Opposition leaders that we should not abide by the Constitution?\u201d Irani said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"o-story-list\" id=\"jetpack_most_read_posts_list\">\n<p>Most Read<\/p>\n<div class=\"o-story-num\">\n<div class=\"o-story-num__title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"story-num\"> 1<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a data-device=\"Desktop\" data-event-category=\"Most Read\" class=\"o-story-num-content click-event\" id=\"IE_Jetpack_Read_Most1\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/cities\/chandigarh\/indo-canadian-relations-sour-students-residents-anxiety-8946829\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">As Indo-Canadian relations sour, anxiety grips Indian students, residents who wish to settle in Canada<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"o-story-num__title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"story-num\"> 2<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a data-device=\"Desktop\" data-event-category=\"Most Read\" class=\"o-story-num-content click-event\" id=\"IE_Jetpack_Read_Most2\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/entertainment\/bollywood\/jawan-box-office-collection-day-13-shah-rukh-khan-film-to-pass-rs-900-crore-globally-8947787\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Jawan box office collection day 13: Shah Rukh Khan film to pass Rs 900 crore globally, just days away from overtaking Pathaan<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button data-device=\"Desktop\" data-event-category=\"Most Read\" class=\"moreless-button\">See More<\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>She also hit out at the Opposition, such as the <a rel=\"noamphtml\" href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/about\/samajwadi-party\/\" class=\"\" target=\"_blank\">Samajwadi Party<\/a>, for demanding reservation for minorities, saying they do not know that reservation based on religion is \u201cprohibited\u201d by the Constitution. \u201cThose who are arguing this perhaps do not know that reservation on the basis of religion is prohibited in the Constitution. The nation supports this Bill. If the Opposition does not become a roadblock to this, we will be grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She said Prime Minister Modi had always focused on women\u2019s empowerment through gender equity policy and gender budget. The gender budget under UPA in 2013-14 was Rs 90,000 crore. Under the Modi government, the gender budget in 2023-24 is Rs 2.23 lakh crore, she said.<\/p>\n<p>Sunita Duggal of the BJP called the women\u2019s reservation Bill \u201chistoric\u201d, and said women of the country know that it is only Prime Minister Modi who can grant them 33 per cent reservation. She appealed to MPs across political parties to support the Bill.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><script>\n!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s)\n{if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function(){n.callMethod?\nn.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments)};\nif(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0';\nn.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0;\nt.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0];\ns.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)}(window, document,'script',\n'https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/fbevents.js');\nfbq('init', '444470064056909');\nfbq('track', 'PageView');\n<\/script><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/indianexpress.com\/article\/political-pulse\/lok-sabha-clears-womens-bill-amit-shah-8948940\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Clearing the decks for a landmark legislation on 33% reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state Assemblies, the Lower House Wednesday<br \/><button class=\"read-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/world\/lok-sabha-clears-womens-bill-amit-shah-says-empowerment-a-matter-of-principle-not-political-weapon-political-pulse-news\/20\/09\/2023\/\">Read More &rsaquo;<\/a><\/button><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12025,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=555"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newssprinters.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}