Today marks a historic day for half of the country's population as the Lok Sabha is set to vote on the Women's Reservation Bill at 4 PM. Prior to this, the parliamentary session on the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam continued until late Thursday night. Discussions on three bills related to women's reservation, constitutional amendment, and delimitation persisted late into the night. The proceedings of the Lok Sabha had to be extended multiple times—initially until 11 PM, then until 12 AM, followed by 1 AM, and finally until all participating MPs had spoken. A large number of MPs remained present in the house to participate in the discussion.
Late-Night Proceedings and Speaker's Remarks
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla lauded the participation and presence of women MPs. He remarked, "Look at the commitment towards the Women's Reservation Bill; women are sitting in the house so late at night, while " During the proceedings, every woman MP was personally asked and given an opportunity to speak. At 1:20 AM on April 17, Speaker Om Birla announced the adjournment of the house until 11 AM the following morning.
PM Modi's Appeal and Opposition's Demands
Prime Minister Narendra Modi appealed to all parties to support the bill, urging them not to weigh it on a political scale, while he explained to the opposition that supporting the bill would also be beneficial for them. The PM noted that women have never forgiven those who opposed them and called for a consensus on the 33 percent reservation. Conversely, opposition parties, while supporting the reservation, are against its linkage with delimitation. They demand that the government decouple the bill from the delimitation process. The Samajwadi Party specifically demanded that reservation should be implemented within political parties rather than just on seats.
Priyanka Gandhi's Allegations and Kangana Ranaut's Rebuttal
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi alleged that the government intends to abolish the Constitution through this bill and claimed it was introduced to deny participation to the OBC category. She asserted that by making the 2011 Census the basis for delimitation, PM Modi is attempting to snatch the rights of the OBC community. Responding to these allegations, BJP MP Kangana Ranaut hailed PM Modi as the biggest feminist. " She also questioned why the Congress kept the bill pending for so long while in power.
Amit Shah Explains Seat Arithmetic
Addressing the demands of parties from Southern India, Home Minister Amit Shah clarified that the plan to increase seats by 50 percent would benefit every Southern state. He specified that states including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala would see a 50 percent increase in their seats. Shah emphasized that every state would receive equal importance and representation in Parliament.