New Delhi [India], April 13 : Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday welcomed the Centre's move to operationalise the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, with the proposed Amendment Bill, saying that the 33 per cent reservation in the Lok Sabha and state legislatures will put women empowerment on an "auto mode."
The Parliament is set to meet for a three-day special session from April 16, to move the Amendment Bill to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023 and a Delimitation Bill to implement the one-third reservation for women legislators.
Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government's initiatives for women, she called the NDA government's rule an era of 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao and Beti Badhao.'
Addressing the Nari Shakti Vandan Sammelan in the national capital, CM Gupta said, "The Bill and the idea of 33 per cent reservation to women in Parliament depict your vision, which is not just development but women-led development. Now women will be able to participate in policy-making decisions. Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam will take women empowerment on auto mode, after which anything else might not be needed."
Recalling the journey for equal rights for women in India, she noted, "Indian women have witnessed a long journey to attain dignity and equal rights in their own nation. Female foeticide, Sati system, child marriage, illiteracy, and widow remarriage, it began with the era of Beti Bachao. The next stage was Beti Padhao. Now, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we have entered the era of Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao and Beti Badhao. This era began in 2014 when all the policies were centred around women. The previous government neglected the problem of open defecation, but you (PM Modi) have built crores of toilets. When women were suffocating, and their lungs were getting affected, you showed a new way of life with Ujjwala Yojana."
She hailed the NDA governments for appointing women to important cabinet positions.
The Delhi Chief Minister said, "Not just a cosmetic placement, you gave an important portfolio of Foreign Affairs to the late Sushma Swaraj and Finance Ministry to Nirmala Sitharaman, and showed that courage and devotion to duty are not limited to one gender."
"Women across the country stand with you on this bill you introduced in Parliament. I will conclude my speech by dedicating two lines to you: kuch log aaye waqt ke saanchein mein dhal gaye aur kuch log aaye waqt ke saanchein badal gaye (Some people came and moulded themselves to the shape of the times; others came and changed the very mould of time)," she added.
National Commission for Women, Chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar, said that PM Modi fulfilled former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's vision of one-third reservation for women in Parliament.
"Atal Bihari Vajpayeeji had said, 'Women hold up half the sky, so shouldn't they hold at least one third of the political ground?' Prime Minister Narendra Modi has fulfilled his visionary idea with this Nari Shakti Vandan Adhinyam. This Act is not just to provide a reservation in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha, but it attempts to change the mindset that has kept women out of the decision-making process for years. It is a powerful step forward in moving India's democracy beyond mere numbers and toward greater sensitivity," Rahatkar said.
Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam tied women's reservation to the new census and delimitation. Due to census delays, the plan is to proceed with the 2011 census data.
Through the delimitation process, the Lok Sabha seats may increase from 543 to 816 post-amendment.
The Government has planned two major amendments, including a separate Delimitation Bill. Both bills need to be passed as Constitutional amendments for women's reservation. Keeping up with the status quo, there is no provision for OBC reservation, and SC/ST reservation will continue.
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