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Congress General Secretary and MP KC Venugopal on Friday hailed the non-passage of the Women's Reservation Amendment Bill in the Lok Sabha, asserting that opposition had successfully "prevented the hijacking" of women's reservation, accusing the government of attempting to use the bill as a cover for a delimitation exercise that would have allegedly put several states under disadvantage.
The Congress MP also accused the Union government of attempting to allegedly destroy democracy in the country by redrawing constituencies to suit its own interests. "The attempt made by the Union government to destroy democracy and hijack it in the name of women's reservation has been defeated... We supported and even demanded this reservation, but they (BJP) don't want it; instead, they want to do delimitation and divide the constituencies in their interest... The entire opposition has defeated this... Women are intelligent about the issues..." said KC Venugopal. Earlier, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said that the Opposition has "defeated this attack on the Constitution" after the Women's Reservation Amendment Bill failed to pass in the Lok Sabha. Gandhi said the Bill was not, in his view, a genuine step toward women's reservation but "a way to change India's political structure." Speaking to reporters, he said, "We have defeated this attack on the Constitution. We have clearly said that this is not a women's reservation bill, but it is a way to change India's political structure." He further added that the Opposition stands firm on its position and will support any genuine legislation ensuring the immediate implementation of women's reservation. Gandhi added, "I want to say to PM Modi that if you want the Women's Reservation Bill, bring the 2023 Women's Reservation Bill and implement it today... We will give 100 per cent support to you." The Constitution Amendment Bill for the implementation of Women's Reservation from the 2029 general elections was defeated in the Lok Sabha, with the opposition parties voting against it. In the division that took place following the debate on the three bills, 298 members supported the bill while 230 voted against it. A Constitution Amendment Bill is passed if it gets the support of not less than two-thirds of the members present and voting. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla announced the results of the division. "The Constitution (131st Amendment) Amendment Bill did not pass as it did not achieve a 2/3 majority during voting in the House," he said. Opposition parties strongly objected to the Delimitation Bill and said the government should implement women's reservation immediately in the existing strength of the Lok Sabha. They expressed their full support for women's reservation. (ANI)
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