The Hindu : National : BJP wants women’s quota bill passed as it is

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jul 09, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

National

National

BJP wants women’s quota bill passed as it is

J. Balaji

NEW DELHI: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has insisted that the Bill providing 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and State Legislatures be passed in Parliament in the present form without any further delay.

If any other consensus was reached among the parties before the passing of the Bill, then the subject would be discussed in the party forum and a decision taken, said BJP president Rajnath Singh in a communication to the Parliamentary Standing Committee for the Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice Departments. However, he did not specify whether it was about the demand made by some of the parties on providing reservation within reservation, i.e., for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and minorities.

BJP Rajya Sabha member from Maharashtra Balavant alias Bal Apte, who too is the member of the committee, delivered the views of Mr. Rajnath Singh at the committee’s meeting held in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Mr. Singh had also stated that the proposal of the Election Commission (EC) on the Bill was acceptable and the party was ready to go by that idea. It may be recalled that the EC had earlier suggested that the political parties themselves could provide reservation for OBCs and minorities while nominating their women representatives to contest elections.

Committee’s Chairman and Rajya Sabha member E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan told The Hindu that while the Congress, the Communist Party of India, the Communist Party of India (Marxist), the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the Nationalist Congress Party and the All India Forward Bloc were unanimous in their opinion that the Bill, to amend the Constitution, be passed in the present form without any amendments, the Pattali Makkal Katchi during the committee’s sitting at Chennai recently, had wanted amendments on providing reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and minorities before the passage of the Bill that had been pending for nearly 12 years.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal , the Samajwadi Party (SP) and Janata Dal (United) too have been expressing similar views outside and their opinion would be recorded before the committee when it sits at Lucknow on July 22 and at Patna on July 23.

Samajwadi party general secretary Amar Singh, has, in a communication, stated that he would like to present his party’s views before the committee on July 17 in New Delhi, Mr. Natchiappan added.

There is no response from the TDP and the Trinamool Congress so far.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

National