‘Our govt provided 33% quota to women’: PM Modi assures no seat cut for southern states in delimitation

Amid a row over a special session of Parliament called by the government to amend the Nari Shakti Vandan Act, which provides 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the legislation as an achievement of the NDA government, noting it was passed under their rule.

"It is our government that has provided 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies... Parliament is going to reconvene in three days. The law we have passed, which gives 33 per cent reservation to women, should start benefiting from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections. There is a need to enact a law to ensure 33 per cent participation of women in Parliament," he said.

The government has announced an extension of the ongoing Budget session of Parliament by three days, on April 16, 17 and 18, to fast-track steps for operationalising 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies, to implement it from the 2029 general elections.

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Congress has criticised the announcement to extend Parliament by raising questions over its timing, describing it as a violation of the Model Code of Conduct, and argued that the move is aimed at influencing the outcome of the assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, scheduled to be held later this month.

The Prime Minister, who was speaking at a public rally in poll-bound Kerala, said, "We have called the Congress people for a meeting, we hope they will listen to us... This amendment must pass by consensus."

On the issue of delimitation, which has sparked fears across southern states over being at a disadvantage in political influence after the process, Modi assured that "no seats will be reduced" and that the increase in seats will benefit states across the country.

"Kerala, Tamil Nadu, or other states that have done good work in population control, we want to firmly ensure in the law in Parliament this time that nowhere should the Lok Sabha seats be reduced... and second, the seats for women should increase as additional seats," he added.

Meanwhile, Congress cautioned against any haste in amending the Constitution regarding the delimitation of parliamentary and assembly constituencies, saying it is a sensitive matter and can put several states at a significant disadvantage.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, who addressed a press conference, referred to correspondence between party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, and said the party had demanded that an all-party meeting be convened after the conclusion of assembly polls on April 29 to discuss the bill to amend the Women's Reservation Act.