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NEW DELHI: Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi connected Monday warned that the Centre’s reported propulsion connected delimitation—not women’s reservation—is the “real issue” down the peculiar Parliament session, calling it “extremely dangerous” and an “assault” connected the Constitution.In an nonfiction published successful The Hindu, Congress Rajya Sabha MP argued that immoderate workout to summation the spot of the Lok Sabha indispensable beryllium “politically and not conscionable arithmetically equitable”, stressing that states which person performed amended connected colonisation power indispensable not beryllium disadvantaged.She besides accused the authorities of rushing authorities during an ongoing predetermination rhythm successful states similar Tamil Nadu and West Bengal to “derive governmental vantage and spot the Opposition connected the defensive”.“There tin beryllium lone 1 crushed for the bonzer hurry,” she said, alleging it was to summation governmental advantage. She further accused the premier curate of being “economical with the truth.”
Women’s preservation ‘not the issue’, says Congress
Referring to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, Sonia noted that Parliament had already unanimously passed the instrumentality successful September 2023, linking women’s preservation to a aboriginal Census and delimitation workout nether Article 334-A.
“The Opposition had not asked for this condition,” she said, adding that Congress had pushed for implementation from the 2024 Lok Sabha elections itself. She questioned the reported determination to amend the proviso to alteration implementation from 2029, asking wherefore the authorities was making a “U-turn” aft 30 months.She besides pointed retired that Leader of Opposition successful the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge had demanded contiguous implementation, which the authorities declined.Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi echoed her concerns, stating that the risks of a “rushed delimitation” were cardinal to the debate.Sonia besides highlighted that the instrumentality provides for “reservation wrong reservation” for SCs and STs, and noted that a akin request for OBC women’s preservation had been raised during the 2023 debate.
Census delay, caste number nether fire
Fomer Lok Sabha MP besides linked the contented to delays successful the Census, noting that the 2021 workout had been postponed and that enumeration has lone precocious begun aft a five-year delay. She added that the hold had deprived implicit 10 crore radical of their ineligible entitlements nether the National Food Security Act, 2013.She argued that claims that a caste census would dilatory down the process were unfounded, citing quicker surveys conducted by states similar Bihar and Telangana. She besides referenced statements by officials that astir Census 2027 information would beryllium disposable the aforesaid twelvemonth owed to its integer format, calling the government’s urgency “hollow.”Alleging inconsistency, she said the authorities had earlier rejected a caste census earlier aboriginal announcing it arsenic portion of Census 2027. “The Prime Minister’s existent volition present is to further hold and derail the caste census,” she claimed.
Govt pushes up with peculiar session
The remarks travel up of a peculiar Parliament sitting from April 16 to 18, wherever amendments linked to women’s preservation are expected. The authorities is besides considering a abstracted delimitation bill, with projections suggesting Lok Sabha seats could summation from 543 to 816.Prime Minister Narendra Modi is acceptable to code a ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Sammelan’ successful New Delhi, aimed astatine gathering enactment for enhancing women’s practice successful legislatures.Former Congress President said Opposition leaders had written thrice seeking an all-party gathering aft April 29 to sermon the proposals, but the petition was rejected. She criticised the authorities for alternatively resorting to op-eds and nationalist outreach, calling it an “underhand tactic” reflecting a “my mode oregon the highway” approach.She besides argued that determination is nary urgency, noting that the Monsoon league begins successful mid-July and that proposals could person been discussed then, aft wider consultation and nationalist debate.Sonia, however, maintained that the process being followed is “deeply flawed and anti-democratic,” asserting that “reservation for women is not the contented here… the existent contented is delimitation.”"Reservation for women is not the contented here. That has already been settled. The existent contented is delimitation which, based connected the accusation unofficially available, is highly unsafe and an battle connected the Constitution itself," Sonia wrote.
