NEW DELHI: Making a strong pitch for reservation for OBC women and a nationwide caste census, Congress parliamentary party chief Sonia Gandhi extended her party’s support to the women’s reservation bill passed in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday.
In her maiden speech at the new Parliament, the former Congress president demanded that the quota be implemented immediately. Leading the Congress’ charge, Gandhi said any delay in implementing the quota bill would be a “gross injustice” to Indian women. According to the Bill, the quota will only be implemented after the completion of the census and delimitation exercise. “Rajiv Gandhi’s dream is only half fulfilled. It will be fulfilled with the passage of this bill. The Congress supports this bill,” she said.
“We will be happy with the passage of this bill, but we have a concern. I want to ask a question. For the last 13 years, Indian women have been waiting for their political responsibilities, and now they are being asked to wait for a few more years — two years, four years, six years, eight years,” she said.
“Is such behaviour with Indian women appropriate? It is the demand of the Congress that the bill be immediately implemented... but, along with that, provision should be made for the reservation of SC, ST, OBC women after conducting a caste census,” she said.
It was an emotional moment for her as her husband Rajiv Gandhi was the first to introduce a bill on women's reservation in panchayats. “This is a very poignant moment in my life. It was my life partner Rajiv Gandhi ji who for the first time had brought the constitutional amendment for the participation of women in local bodies, but it was defeated in the Rajya Sabha by seven votes. Later, the Congress government under the leadership of Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao got it passed,” Gandhi said.
“From smoke-filled kitchens to flood-lit stadiums, the Indian woman’s journey has been a long one. But she has reached her destination,” she added. Recalling the contribution of the likes of Sarojini Naidu, Sucheta Kripalani, Aruna Asaf Ali, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur and millions of other women, she said they have always ensured that the dreams of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru Sardar Patel, Baba Saheb Ambedkar and Maulana Azad are realised.