New Delhi, April 17 (IANS). Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Ram Shiromani Verma raised important questions during the discussion on the Constitution Amendment Bill related to the implementation and delimitation of the Nari Shakti Vandan Act in the Lok Sabha. He expressed his gratitude to Presiding Officer Jagdambika Pal and also expressed concern over the increasing number of Lok Sabha seats.
SP MP Ram Shiromani Verma said that at present there are 543 MPs in the Lok Sabha, yet all the MPs do not get enough time on serious issues. In such a situation, when Lok Sabha seats will exceed 800, will every MP get a chance to express his views in the House? He asked, “With the increased seats, will the government ensure that every MP will get enough time to express his views in the House?”
To this, Jagdambika Pal, who was presiding, replied, “It is going on till 1:00 in the night, isn’t it?”
Ram Shiromani Verma further said that not only one bill is being discussed in the House, but the debate is going on on an important topic like the rights of half the country’s population i.e. mothers, sisters and daughters, their representation and deciding the direction of democracy. He thanked Samajwadi Party National President Akhilesh Yadav and said that the ideology of SP has always been in favor of social justice and respectable representation of women.
The MP fully supported the 33 percent provision of women’s reservation, but raised questions on the government’s intentions and timing. He said, “The bill was passed in 2023. If the government wanted, it could have implemented it at that time. Now the assembly elections of many states including Uttar Pradesh are to be held in 2027, then this bill is being brought. It clearly shows the intention of the government. When it was time to give rights, the government remained asleep and when the elections came, it remembered the rights of women.”
He stressed that democracy will be strengthened only when women get real and equal representation of 33 per cent reservation not only in Parliament and Assembly, but up to the Gram Panchayat level, because the foundation of a strong India lies from the village.
Verma further demanded that there should be 50 percent reservation for women instead of 33 percent. He said, “India is a country with half the population being women. 50 percent reservation should be given to women in government jobs, in the education sector, in the cabinet and also in the sports sector.” Apart from this, he also demanded implementation of reservation for OBC women in Rajya Sabha, Lok Sabha, Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council.
–IANS
SCH/DKP
