VIJAYAWADA: On Day-1 of the Mahanadu, the annual conclave of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) on Wednesday, party working president and Minister for HRD and IT Nara Lokesh made a key and sensational proposal for allocation of 33% reservation for women within the party for the 2029 General Elections.
As this year’s Mahanadu themed around ‘Stree Shakti’, the announcement is being seen as a major political and ideological commitment towards women-led leadership and gender equality in Indian politics.
The proposal comes at a time when the Women’s Reservation Bill continues to face political hurdles and opposition resistance in Parliament.
TDP’s move is now being viewed as an attempt to lead by example rather than wait for national political consensus.
Leaders of the TDP say that over the last few years, Lokesh has consistently focused on women’s empowerment across sectors, from introducing progressive changes in education and textbooks to repeatedly advocating respect and dignity for women within political and social spaces.
Lokesh said he strongly believes that the next era of Indian politics must belong to women leadership.
He said the NDA government had already taken a historic step by bringing the Women’s Reservation Bill and stressed that women must not remain mere beneficiaries of welfare schemes but should become active decision-makers in governance and politics.
India needs more women lawmakers: Nara Lokesh
He said opposition parties had attempted to create obstacles to women empowerment by rejecting the Women’s Reservation Bill.
In contrast, he asserted that the TDP believes in empowerment both in principle and in practice.
Lokesh said that TDP should lead from the front. From the Mahanadu stage, he proposed that the Telugu Desam Party allocate 33% seats to women in the 2029 Elections. He described it not as a slogan, but as a commitment to the future of India.
Lokesh further stated that the country needs more women lawmakers.
Taking a dig at the YSRCP, Lokesh remarked that ‘Team-11’ (YSRCP) appeared to celebrate the hybrid format announcement, but asserted that political accountability and debate could not be avoided.
Describing Mahanadu a ‘festival of yellow pride’ and said it served as a platform for every TDP worker to proudly identify themselves with the party and Telugu identity, he reiterated that ‘Nation First’ remains the core principle of the TDP and said the party was following the direction envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Lokesh said the party had initially planned to hold Mahanadu on a large scale in Nellore, but the event was later shifted to a hybrid format due to special circumstances.
Highlighting the state’s investment potential, he claimed that Andhra Pradesh was currently attracting nearly 25 percent of the investments entering the country.
