Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday said the Women’s Reservation Bill was passed in Parliament with an ulterior motive and was actually a conspiracy hatched by the BJP government to prevent reservation for women.
“Since the 2024 Lok Sabha election is approaching, the BJP has passed the Bill to deceive women and get their votes. It is my opinion that it was a conspiracy hatched by the BJP to prevent reservation for women in politics. Prime Minister Narendra Modi would have deserved our appreciation if only he had said that the reservation would be implemented in the Assembly elections and the Lok Sabha poll,” he said at the Women’s Rights Conference organised by DMK MP Kanimozhi and the women’s wing of the party to commemorate former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi’s birth centenary.
By linking the implementation of reservation for women to census and delimitation, the BJP had actually postponed it indefinitely, he said, adding: “It is like a genie saying it would offer a gift if one crossed seven hills and oceans.”
On the objective of the conference, Mr Stalin said it was not only about women’s rights, but also the rights of all sections of society. “The questions looming large over the country today are whether the present Parliamentary system will survive and people’s democracy will continue. In the name of one country, one language, one religion, one culture, one election, one examination and one food, Mr. Modi is striving hard to establish a single-party rule. It will pave the way for autocratic rule,” he said, and urged the people to vote out the BJP government in the 2024 election.
He said the BJP could surely be defeated if the anti-BJP parties unite and rise above their differences to form a political alliance, similar to the one in Tamil Nadu. “The BJP can be defeated only through unity, and Tamil Nadu has shown the way since the 2019 election. A united alliance like the one in Tamil Nadu should be formed in every State,” he said.
Pointing out that the ideology of the BJP was confining women to household activities and denying them substantial rights, he said defeating the BJP was the duty of all democratic forces in India.
Mr. Stalin said a significant flaw in the legislation for reservation for women was the absence of quota for women belonging to OBCs and minority communities. “The voice of the marginalised and economically disadvantaged sections will resonate in the Assemblies and Parliament only if they are given internal reservation,” he said.
Ms. Kanimozhi said it was the DMK government led by Kalaignar (Karunanidhi) that turned around the lives of women. “They used to say that men protect women. But Kalaignar included women in the police force and they became the protectors of men. Now Chief Minister Stalin has come out with a slew of schemes including free bus pass [for women], educational assistance to girls for completing their education and ₹1000 per month to house wives,” she said.
She alleged that though Mr. Modi repeatedly talked about nari shakti (women power), the legislation passed by the BJP government could not be implemented even after 50 years. “The BJP has done it only for the sake of elections and to get women’s votes. There is no protection for women. Manipur is burning. Women and children are living in camps in despicable conditions.”
