Kolkata, April 20 -- Senior BJP leader Smriti Irani on Monday reiterated the party's commitment to implementing the women's reservation law, while accusing the TMC and the Congress of adopting a "contradictory" stand and delaying its rollout.
Addressing a press conference here, Irani said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already made the government's position clear, which is to ensure the implementation of 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies.
Highlighting the BJP's internal structure, Irani claimed, "We are a political organisation which has reserved seats for women within the party. Today, women are equal participants even in the Parliamentary board that decides tickets."
Targeting the Opposition, she questioned their shifting stance on delimitation, a prerequisite for implementing the reservation. "If they supported earlier, why did they suddenly make it an issue during the special session and withdraw support?" she asked, calling it a "serious question" for both the Congress and the TMC.
"Were they deceiving the country then, or are they doing so now?" she said, referring to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other Opposition leaders.
Taking aim at West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Irani said attempts to defer implementation of the women's reservation amounted to delaying women's rights. "How long should women of Bengal and the country
wait? Irani asked, stating, "This is not just a betrayal of women in Bengal, but of women across the country."
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.