Lucknow, Apr 30 (PTI) SP members staged a protest in Uttar Pradesh Assembly premises on Thursday, accusing the BJP of misleading the people on the issue of women’s reservation.
The protest came ahead of the special one-day session of the assembly during which the government is expected to move a censure motion against opposition parties, holding them responsible for the failure to pass the Women’s Reservation Amendment Bill in Lok Sabha.
Holding banners that read ‘Implement 33% Women’s Reservation, the Samajwadi Party (SP) members staged the protest in front of the statue of Chaudhary Charan Singh.
SP MLA Sangram Singh Yadav told reporters that the BJP is “misleading” the public in the name of women’s reservation.
The BJP is deliberately withholding the benefits of this legislation from women solely to facilitate the delimitation of constituencies according to its own preferences, he charged.
“The BJP stands exposed on this issue. It has been anti-women from the very beginning. It is our leaders Dr Ram Manohar Lohia and Mulayam Singh Yadav who have always championed women’s rights,” he added.
Participating in the protest, SP MLA Amitabh Bajpai demanded the immediate implementation of the women’s reservation law, questioning why the BJP is failing to enforce a statute that was passed in 2023.
He further demanded that the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly elections be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the women’s reservation law.
Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council Lal Bihari Yadav asserted that the SP is a staunch proponent of women’s reservation.
“The women’s reservation bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament back in 2023. We harbour no opposition whatsoever to women’s reservation; rather, the BJP is the one misleading the public under the guise of women’s empowerment,” Yadav said.
SP MLA Kamal Akhtar also questioned why the BJP is creating confusion regarding the issue, given that the women’s reservation bill was unanimously passed by Parliament in 2023. PTI SLM CDN DV DV
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.