Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) [India], April 18 : Targeting DMK over its opposition to the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said that they made a 'U turn" for the Women's reservation after having supported the passage of the bill in 2023, accusing the ruling Tamil Nadu party of prioritising politics over women's welfare.
Adressing a poll rally in Coimbatore with Tamil Nadu Assembly elections due in next week, PM Modi highlighted that he appealed to all the political parties during the special sitting of Parliament to support the legislative process, that they can "take the credit" as he only "wanted sisters from ordinary families to come to the Parliament and Assemblies in greater numbers."
This comes as the Constitution Amendment Bill for the implementation of Women's Reservation from the 2029 general elections failed to garner two third majority in the Lok Sabha on Friday, with the opposition parties including DMK and Congress voting against it. In the division following the debate, 298 members supported the bill while 230 voted against it.
"But unfortunately, this noble effort was derailed. DMK, Congress and their allies made it a target of hatred and petty politics" PM Modi said, assuring that Tamil Nadu's representation in the Lok Sabha was going to increase if the Bill was passed."Clearly, DMK did not want this to happen. Their actions are now clearly exposed," he thundered.
Taking a dig at the DMK for their black flag protest in the Karumandapam area of Tiruchirappalli on Thursday as a sign of dissent against the delimitation, he said, "By wearing black clothes, DMK cannot cover up their wrong intentions... People know your black deeds, and you cannot escape them any longer".
"Tamil Nadu people are giving clear message that NDA is in, DMK is out," he declared, expressing confidence ahead of the upcoming April 23 election.
With the Bill failing to secure the necessary two-thirds majority in Lok Sabha yesterday, the ruling government leaders have accused the INDIA bloc of being "anti-women" while the opposition has maintained that they suport the women's quota but opposes linking it with delimitation and census processes, claiming that the Union Government brought forth the Amendment Bill as a political ploy to "rejig" the electoral map under the guise of women reservation.
With the Bill stalled, the government is expected to take this narrative to the grassroots level, turning the legislative defeat into a major campaign talking point in the assembly polls in Bengal and Tamil Nadu.
Meanwhile, the Opposition continues to argue that the Bill's current formlinked to the census and delimitationis a tactical delay by the government, rather than a genuine attempt at immediate empowerment.
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