Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has reiterated his demand for an all-party meeting on the Women’s Reservation Bill, even as Parliament is set to convene a special session on Thursday to deliberate and legislate on the issue.
Gehlot insisted on extensive discussions through a formal all-party meeting and rejected the government’s move to hold discussions in discrete, one-on-one, party-wise meetings.
He once again questioned the haste being shown by the BJP-led ruling dispensation and sought to know the reason behind its reluctance to convene an all-party meeting.
“Why do they want to bulldoze it through a special session, ignoring the Opposition’s persistent demand for a meeting?” the three-time former Chief Minister and seasoned parliamentarian quipped while speaking to the media upon his return from New Delhi on Tuesday afternoon.
He said, “While passing the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, and the related constitutional amendment, this very Modi-led government deferred the implementation of the reservation quota until the completion of the delayed 2021 Census and the delimitation process based on it. This was done without any demand from the Opposition, even ignoring Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge’s call for immediate implementation in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.”
“Now, this sudden haste to proceed with delimitation based on the 2011 Census—why this U-turn, especially amid crucial Assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu? Why not even accept our demand for an all-party meeting immediately after polling ends on April 29?” he asked.
Gehlot further questioned whether such urgency during the ongoing election process could violate the Model Code of Conduct. He argued that delimitation based on the 2011 Census would be against democratic norms and unjust to new voters added to the electoral rolls after 2011.
“This forces us to believe that there is some mala fide intent behind these hasty moves, aimed at drawing political mileage in the Assembly polls. They are also conspiring to defame the Opposition by holding us responsible if the government’s bid does not succeed,” he alleged.
Asserting that women’s reservation has historically been a Congress initiative, Gehlot said, “In fact, this is our issue—we conceptualised it, worked on it, and have always supported it. Legislation on such a matter requires proper deliberation to build consensus or unanimity.”
He described the issue as the “brainchild” of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, who initiated and developed it nearly 35 years ago. Gehlot added that extensive consultations and prolonged discussions with Opposition parties during that period eventually paved the way, under the government of P. V. Narasimha Rao, for laws providing 33 per cent reservation for women in Panchayati Raj institutions and urban local bodies.
Gehlot noted that the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, rests on the strong foundation of those 1993 laws and related constitutional amendments.
He further said that, on the initiative of Sonia Gandhi, a Women’s Reservation Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha earlier, but it could not be taken up in the Lok Sabha due to the prevailing circumstances. “We did not bulldoze it, unlike the present regime,” he remarked.
Questioning the government’s urgency, he said, “We were never in haste. Why is the Prime Minister and the ruling dispensation in such a rush, especially during peak electioneering in the two states?”
“Just as the 2023 law was passed unanimously, a similar consensus can be achieved even now,” Gehlot added.
Meanwhile, the ruling dispensation continued its nationwide campaign, ‘Nari Shakti Vandan Samvad’, in the state.
A programme held at the BM Birla Auditorium here was attended by Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma, Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumari, several women MLAs and ministers, and delegates from different walks of life.