Bhopal, April 21 The Madhya Pradesh government has called a one-day special session of the Legislative Assembly on April 27 to discuss women’s empowerment and their holistic development, but the move has sparked a political debate, with the opposition questioning its intent.
The session, themed ‘Nari Shakti Vandan’, comes at a significant time following the recent failure of a key women’s reservation proposal in Parliament.
A notification issued on Tuesday confirmed that the House will deliberate on women’s rights, safety, representation, and socio-economic development.
The government is expected to review ongoing schemes and outline new measures to strengthen women’s participation across sectors.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly, Umang Singhar, criticised the decision, calling it politically motivated.
He said the Bharatiya Janata Party merely seeks to use women as a stepping stone to attain power and urged it to implement women’s reservation across all 543 Lok Sabha seats, assuring full support in that case.
The development follows the setback to the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam in the Lok Sabha, which has intensified the debate on women’s representation.
While the Bharatiya Janata Party has reiterated its commitment to women’s empowerment, the Congress has accused it of engaging in symbolic politics.
Singhar said the Congress has consistently supported women’s reservation and would back any genuine move to implement it fully.
He said that if a reservation for women is implemented across all 543 seats, the Congress party will stand in full support, but any attempt to tamper with the Constitution will be strongly opposed.
He also alleged that the government was ignoring more pressing issues in the state.
He said innocent children are dying due to substances like cough syrup, people are losing their lives due to contaminated drinking water, and even the safety of newborns in hospitals is not guaranteed, yet no special session is called on these issues.
Raising concerns over social justice, Singhar said the rights of Other Backward Classes and tribal communities continue to be overlooked.
He said these are serious issues, but the government chooses silence, stressing that real empowerment requires concrete policy action and equal participation.
--IANS
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