‘The journey of an average Indian woman has been a long one, but, she has finally reached her destination’ Sonia Gandhi opens the debate on the Women’s Reservation Bill

Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi began the debate on the Women’s Reservation Bill as the first speaker from the Opposition on Wednesday. "On behalf of the INC, I stand here in support of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam”, she said stating that her party wholeheartedly supports the legislation. However, she also demanded the inclusion of Other Backward Classes into the slated 33% quota for women. Mrs Gandhi also said that the bill must be implemented immediately as ‘the journey of an average Indian woman has been a long one, but, she has finally reached her destination.’ The senior Congress leader also mentioned that the passage of the bill would fulfill the dreams of her 'life partner' Rajiv Gandhi, who had introduced a bill on the reservation of seats for women in local bodies. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey hit back at the Opposition for inciting discord and saying new things "for political angles."

“The Congress party supports the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam. We will be happy if the bill is passed. But I want to ask, in the past 13 years, women have waited patiently for this bill. But now, our women have been asked to wait for some more years. How many years? 2? 3? 6? 8?” asked Sonia Gandhi as she opened the debate centering on the bill in the Lower House of the Parliament. Gandhi's comments were in tandem with a clause in the bill that states the political reservation for women will go into force following the delimitation exercise, which cannot be completed before 2026, and the conclusion of the decadal census, which was expected in 2021. “We want this bill to be implemented immediately. However, in addition to this, SC, ST and OBC women should get reservations. Along with this, the caste census should also be conducted. Any further delay in implementing this bill will be an injustice to women. It must be implemented at the earliest,” she added, stating the need for inclusion of the OBCs into the bill, and urging an early implementation of the bill.

“Much like a river, the women of India never thought about their own profit and benefitted everyone. It is impossible to understand the patience of women. She had made us intelligent and hard-working,” said Mrs Gandhi lauding the achievements of this country. She further stated that the women of India have always shouldered responsibilities with men, even during the freedom struggle. “Sarojini Naidu, Sucheta Kriplani, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Aruna Asaf Ali worked hard to realize the vision of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel and Maulana Azad,” added Sonia Gandhi.

Taking a jibe at Sonia Gandhi and the Congress, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey said, "This country runs on the Constitution. They have been patting themselves on the back for introducing reservations for women in panchayats and local bodies. They never spoke about, or provided for OBC reservation. They are bringing up new things for political angles." Dubey further stated that the bill has provisions for the SC and ST communities and the Congress is upset because Prime Minister Narendra Modi had the courage to table the bill, while the Opposition failed to do so in these many years. "The Prime Minister has been saying it is the right time and we are proud of him for calling this special session to table a bill that gives the due respect and reservation to the women of this country”, he added.

The Union cabinet approved a Constitution Amendment Bill to allow reservation for women in national and state legislatures on Monday evening, paving the way for the landmark legislation to be introduced in Parliament's ongoing special session.