The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has slammed the Congress party's stance on the Women's Reservation Bill, accusing them of repeatedly withholding the legislation's passage over the years. It said that now the Bill was passed by the Union Cabinet and had been introduced in Parliament, the Congress is trying to steal credit for the effort. The BJP said the Congress, the largest party in the I.N.D.I.A, has consistently paid lip service to women's representation while undermining it through their own alliance partners and MPs.
On Tuesday, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal introduced the much-anticipated Women's Reservation Bill, named Nari Shakti Vandan Vidheyak, in Lok Sabha. This came after the Union Cabinet cleared the Bill. The Bill seeks to reserve 33% of the seats in Lok Sabha and the state legislative assemblies. The Centre's move received the unanimous support of all parties, even though the Congress said that the demand was initiated by the UPA under the leadership of Sonia Gandhi. To This, the BJP responded by saying that the Grand Old Party was only trying to steal credit.
The BJP in a press statement on Tuesday pointed to several instances where the Congress allegedly stopped the Women's Reservation Bill from being passed. The saffron party further said that the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government had introduced the bill in Parliament multiple times, but it was consistently thwarted by the Congress and its allies. PM Modi, too, said that the Vajpayee government couldn't pass it as it lacked the necessary majority to pass it. The BJP accused the Congress of employing hypocrisy by obstructing the bill in Parliament despite publicly supporting it.
The BJP further alleged that the Congress orchestrated a "drama" in Lok Sabha through its allies, preventing the bill from being passed. Senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi herself admitted that "some members of her party opposed it", because of which she could not get the required numbers, the BJP alleged.
The BJP alleged that the Congress had succumbed to pressure from its own alliance partners, who blackmailed the party into withdrawing support for the bill when it was introduced by the BJP. The BJP also shared a video of Gandhi's interview, where she appears to hint that Congress allies were not on board with the party on the Bill due to certain "compulsions".
The BJP also detailed instances of physical disruptions in the past when the bill was introduced, including members snatching copies of the bill and creating commotions in the Rajya Sabha, leading to suspensions.
The statement included quotes from political figures, such as Sharad Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav, and Lalu Prasad Yadav, who made certain controversial remarks while opposing the bill. They cited arguments against the bill, including concerns about its impact on minority communities and said that it would lead to an imbalance in parliamentary representation.
The BJP said that throughout its presence in Parliament, it consistently supported the Women's Reservation Bill. According to the party, it had maintained an unwavering stance in favour of the legislation, both in and out of power. "Congress, which had the requisite majority in 2010 could pass the bill through Rajya Sabha only because of support of BJP," the party said. The saffron party emphasized that the BJP was among the few parties that had consistently supported the bill.