Sonia Gandhi targets govt on delimitation and women’s Reservation issues

Sonia Gandhi, Chairperson of the Congress Parliamentary Party, has criticized the central government over women’s reservation and delimitation through an article published in a newspaper.

On Monday, Gandhi clearly stated that the real concern at present is not women’s reservation, but the proposed delimitation, which she described as “extremely dangerous” and “an attack on the Constitution.” In her article, she warned that the way the delimitation issue is being raised in the special session of Parliament could affect the democratic balance. She alleged that the government is pushing the matter in haste, possibly with political gain in mind.

Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she said that while support from the opposition is being sought, transparency is not being maintained on this critical issue. She also noted that the opposition’s repeated requests for an all-party meeting have been consistently ignored.

Gandhi reminded that under the Nari Shakti Vandan Act passed by Parliament in 2023, 33 percent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies had already been provided. However, implementation requires census data and delimitation.

She questioned why the government did not make a decision earlier if it intends to implement women’s reservation from 2029. She added that any increase in the number of Lok Sabha seats should not be based solely on mathematical calculations but also consider political balance, so that states making progress in population control are not disadvantaged.

Additionally, she criticized the government for delaying caste-based census, pointing out that States like Bihar and Telangana have proven that the survey can be conducted in a short time.

Finally, she questioned the decision to postpone the 2021 census, saying it deprived benefits to millions of people of government schemes. She appealed to the government to engage in broad discussions with the opposition and make the entire process democratic rather than rushed.

It is noteworthy that a three-day special session of Parliament on women’s reservation has been scheduled from April 16–18.