In Kerala, PM sends strong message on delimitation, women’s quota Bill
Speaking for the first time on the forthcoming women reservation Bill coupled with the delimitation process to be brought in a Special Session of Parliament this month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday asserted that Lok Sabha seats would not be reduced in south Indian states that have successfully controlled population, and that the total number of seats will increase to benefit States across the country.
Addressing an NDA Assembly election rally at Thiruvalla in Kerala, the Prime Minister said the Parliament session has been extended to April 16-18 to pass amendments to the law ensuring 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies.
Talking about the Bills, Modi said that the extension will also safeguard South Indian states from losing any seats despite their success in population control. “There are false rumours being spread that seats will be reduced in South Indian states due to population control, but this is completely untrue. Parliament will take steps to ensure that its seats are fully protected. States like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Telangana, and others that have done well in population control must not lose any Lok Sabha seats, even if their population growth is lower,” Modi said.
Modi’s statement came after Congress targeted the BJP by raising the delimitation issue. Congress argued that the southern states, which have effectively controlled their populations, should not be ‘punished’ with fewer parliamentary seats.
Modi said that the Government’s goal was to ensure 33 per cent women’s representation in Parliament from 2029 onwards and urged all parties to support the bill. “Our Government has ensured 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies. From 16 - 18 April, Parliament will reconvene to deliberate on the Nari Shakti Vandan Act and take it forward. Our goal is to ensure 33 per cent women’s representation in Parliament from 2029 onwards,” he said, urging all parties to support the bill.
The PM also held a massive roadshow in Thiruvananthapuram, drawing huge crowds. The city’s streets turned into a sea of supporters as the NDA intensified its campaign for the April 9 Assembly polls. Senior BJP leaders and candidates-Rajeev Chandrasekhar, R Sreelekha, V Muraleedharan, and Karamana Jayan-joined the procession. This reinforced the party’s show of strength in the state.
Attacking the current regime in the State, Modi said that the countdown for the removal of the LDF Government in Kerala has started, and a BJP-led NDA will come to power in the state. Modi tore into the Congress and the Left, saying that while they dismiss everything — from Kerala Story to Dhurandhar — as lies, it is they who have “become pros at lying.”
Speaking at another public address in Pathanamthitta district, Modi said that the saffron party workers in the State have signalled a strong mood to bid farewell to the Left rule. On the Sabarimala gold loss issue, Modi said that the LDF and UDF conspired to defame pilgrimage to the shrine and now the temple has become “a target of their loot”.
Late evening in neighbouring poll-bound Tamil Nadu, Modi held a meeting with senior leaders of the BJP in the State at a private hotel in Chennai. According to party sources, Modi held the meeting with senior leaders, including Union Commerce Minister and BJP’s election in-charge for Tamil Nadu, Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, L. Murugan, State BJP President Nainar Nagenthran and former State presidents Pon. Radhakrishnan, Tamilisai Soundararajan, and K. Annamalai.
The meeting lasted nearly 45 minutes, in which BJP’s national in charge and co-in charge for Tamil Nadu, Arvind Menon and P. Sudhakar Reddy, respectively, and the party’s women’s wing national president, Vanathi Srinivasan, were also present. The leaders apprised Modi regarding the ongoing election-related work in the State, sources said.
