Congress, Left walkout over women’s Bill
Tribune News Service and agencies

NEW DELHI, Dec 20 — The contentious Women’s Reservation Bill and its non-introduction so far, led to a walkout in the Lok Sabha today with the Congress and Left parties pressing for its passage in the current session while the Samajwadi Party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal opposed it.

The issue was raised by the leader of the Opposition, Mrs Sonia Gandhi, who wanted to know the fate of the Bill providing one-third reservation for women in Parliament and state assemblies. She demanded the passage of the Bill before House rose for the next millennium.

Expressing regret that there was no sign of the Bill in the winter session of the House, due to end on Thursday, she reminded that the government had promised last week to introduce the Bill this week.

The issue, however, brought forth sharp differences in the Opposition ranks as the Samajwadi Party and the RJD opposed the Bill in the present form demanding sub-quota for women belonging to backward classes and minorities.

The Telugu Desam Parliamentary Party leader, Mr K. Yerrannaidu, however, supported the Congress demand and said the Bill should be introduced tomorrow or the day after.

In response to Mrs Sonia Gandhi’s demand, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mr Pramod Mahajan, said the government was committed to introduce the Bill in the current session but whether it would be passed or not depended on Lok Sabha members.

Former Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar cautioned the government against the introduction of the Bill in a hurry without consensus.

Unable to get a response from the government that the Bill would be introduced tomorrow, angry members of the Congress and Left parties walked out of the House after having heated exchanges with those opposing the legislation for nearly half an hour.

Outside the House, there was a sense of elation among many a Congres members as they saw their leader playing the role of the leader of Opposition and taking up an issue which generated debate. This was the first time after she became an MP that Mrs Gandhi was seen taking up an issue.

Later, the Congress party charged that the intention of the government was not clear and perhaps it wanted to introduce the Bill on the last day of the session to “go through to the motion”.

However, the party refused to make its position known on the demand for quota within quota stating that the ball was in the government’s court.

“It is for the government to take a decision and initiative in this regard and evolve a consensus on it”, the party spokesman said.

Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, who had heated exchanges with Congress deputy leader Madhavrao Scindia and CPI leader Indrajit Gupta, said his party members were prepared to forego their membership of the House but would not tolerate introduction of the Bill in its present form, and asserted it must have a sub-quota for women belonging to backward classes and minorities.

Meanwhile, the BJP today lashed out at the Congess for politicising the women’s Bill and staging a walkout in the Lok Sabha despite the government’s assurance that it would bring in the Bill within 48 hours.

The Congress just wants to make the headlines by politicising the issue, BJP spokesman M. Venkaiah Naidu told media persons here.

He said Mr Mahajan had told them that they should wait for another 48 hours.

But the Congress did not listen to him and walked out from the House.

He said the government had already stated its position that Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee was discussing the issue with leaders of various political parties to reach a broad consensus on the Bill, which had failed at the introduction stage itself twice on early occasions.