Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday alleged that Congress party, SP, and TMC rejoicing and thumping tables after blocking Nari Shakti Vandan Bill in the special session of the Lok Sabha called on April 16 was akin to Draupadi’s insult in Mahabharata and the behaviour of arrogant Ravana in Ramayana.
Dhami said this while speaking in the Uttarakhand assembly’s special session called on Tuesday to discuss the fallen Women Women Reservation Bill on April 18 for want of numbers with the Modi government.
Speaking in the house, he said Opposition parties joined forces to prevent this historic and epochal initiative from being passed in Parliament. “As the Bill could not be passed for want of numerical strength in the Lok Sabha, Opposition leaders began clapping and thumping the tables,” he noted.
“Their happiness and the scene created by the Congress, Samajwadi Party and the TMC leaders in the house were akin to the insult hurled at Draupadi in the court of Dhritrashtra in Mahabharata. Congress and other Opposition parties behaved like arrogant Ravana in the Ramayana,” he remarked.
Dhami further said that with the aim to secure rights for half of the country’s population by the next Lok Sabha elections, a decisive effort was made by convening a special session of the parliament on April 16 but the Opposition intentionally foiled the move to create history. “We assure the women of the country that they will certainly get their due,” he added, adding that Congress has committed a sin by blocking the efforts to give half the population of India their rights.
As the chief minister continued, Opposition Congress legislators attacked him demanding that the state government must implement the law today as it was already passed by Parliament in 2023. To this, Dhami said the state assembly cannot implement women’s reservation but Parliament of the country can. On this, the Opposition created a ruckus in the house, questioning why the session was called if it cannot be implemented. They shouted in chorus for the immediate implementation of 33 per cent reservation to the women in the Uttarakhand assembly.
As the Congress MLA Anupama Rawat demanded that Nari Shakti Vandan law should be implemented in Uttarakhand since it was already enacted by the Centre, questioning the intention behind the special session of the state assembly discussion got twisted on nationalism as the BJP MLA Dilip Rawat remarked that the Congress’ version of nationalism caused “our Kashmiri Pandits driven out of their own state.”
This resulted in the Opposition MLA Sumit Hridayesh to counter Rawat, stating, “It was the Congress that split Pakistan into two pieces.” However the house was again brought in order by Speaker Ritu Khanduri.
Continuing his speech, the chief minister counted the government’s women centric schemes, saying, “Through schemes like Matri Shakti Vandana, PM Mudra Yojana, Jal Jeevan Mission and the construction of 120 million toilets, the Uttarakhand government delivered honour and respect to the women. The Lakhpati Didi Scheme will make women prosperous while they are also being trained for operating drones.”
He alleged that the Opposition never thought about the country’s poor daughters as they failed to read the pulse of the nation.
Dhami further alleged that the Congress party has now started opposing chardham pilgrimage as they have an anathema for the government. “Chardham Yatra is our lifeline. We must encourage and promote it but the state Congress in its hatred for the government has started opposing the pilgrimage” he said.