New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi He launched a blistering attack on the opposition on Saturday for thwarting proposed amendments to the Women’s Reservation Act, accusing them of committing “bhrun hatya” (feticide) in Parliament and undermining the government’s “honest attempt” to provide a 33 per cent quota for women by 2029 and increase the number of Lok Sabha seats in each state by 50 per cent. “Women will never forgive you for this crime,” he said in an address to the nation, affirming that it was only a matter of time before women would get their due share in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. “I promise every woman that we will remove every barrier that stands in the way of women’s retention,” he said. In an impassioned 30-minute speech, he began by apologizing to women for failing to get the bill to amend the women’s reservation law passed despite the government’s best efforts. Claiming that those who defeated the bill had hindered the rise of women and stifled their aspirations, Modi said: “I apologize to my mother and sisters.” Soon he turned to lashing out at the opposition, especially congressTrinamool Congress, SP and DMKHe named four political parties for spreading lies to mislead people about the intentions of the proposed amendments. He said they eventually unmasked themselves in front of the nation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched a blistering attack on the opposition for defeating a proposed amendment to the Women’s Reservation Act, accusing the opposition of committing “bhrun hatya” (abortion) in Parliament by sabotaging the government’s “honest attempt” to provide 33 per cent quota for women by 2029 and increase the number of Lok Sabha seats in each state by 50 per cent.
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“Women will never forgive you for this crime,” he said in an address to the nation, affirming that it was only a matter of time before women would get their due share in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies. “I promise every woman that we will remove every barrier that stands in the way of women’s retention,” he said. In an impassioned 30-minute speech, he began by apologizing to women for failing to get the bill to amend the women’s reservation law passed despite the government’s best efforts. Claiming that those who defeated the bill had hindered the rise of women and stifled their aspirations, Modi said: “I apologize to my mother and sisters.” Soon, he turned and lashed out at the opposition, especially the Congress, Trinamool Congress, SP and DMK, naming the four parties for spreading lies and misleading people about the intentions of the proposed amendments. He said they eventually unmasked themselves in front of the nation.Modi rarely targets his political opponents in national addresses, which he usually uses to talk about pressing policy and governance issues. The departure appeared to signal his intention to take the fight to the Lok Sabha after the united opposition rejected his repeated calls and later assured the Lok Sabha to remove their criticism of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill. He said the bill was not to take away anything but to give equal things to every state, big or small, countering the opposition’s charge that delimitation would reduce the share of southern states in the Lok Sabha. The Women’s Reserves Amendment Bill was the need of the hour as it also sought to increase the political power of every region (be it North, South, East or West) and states in equal proportion. However, he said family-run political parties such as the Congress, TMC, Samajwadi Party and DMK feared that increased female leadership would threaten the position of their ruling families. “Members of these political parties bang the table after taking away women’s rights. It’s not just a knock on the table, it’s a blow to women’s self-esteem. Women can forget everything except insults,” he said. “We may not have 66 percent of the votes to get this bill passed, but I know we have the blessing of 100 percent women,” he added, seeming to reflect the assessment that the BJP can turn setbacks into opportunities to bolster women’s support. He also seemed confident that his opponents would suffer as a result of their decisions. “I want to be honest and say that those who oppose the Constitutional Amendment Bill take women for granted.” Political parties like the Congress, Trinamool, SP and DMK are guilty of abortion, he said, before pointing out that the main opposition party has historically been averse to women’s quotas and is essentially an “anti-reform” party that instinctively criticizes every move of the government, be it GST, digital payments, abrogation of Article 370 and triple talaq or CAA. He said Congress was rejecting and blocking all the reforms India needed in the 21st century. These parties have betrayed their own people, Modi said, adding that parties like DMK and TMC have a good opportunity to politically empower more people of the country. He said that while the Congress itself has lost influence in many parts of the country and is now living like a parasite on its allies, it still drives them to oppose the bill thereby ruining their future. He lashed out at what he called an attempt to sow a North-South divide, despite the government’s repeated claims that no state would be affected. He said the Congress had inherited the divide-and-rule mentality of the British and claimed that every challenge faced by the country was the result of the party steeped in negativity and anti-reform spirit. He said, “For us, the national interest is paramount. But when for some political parties, partisan interests become everything and are placed above the national interest, then women’s empowerment and the national interest have to bear the consequences.” Modi said he, like women, was saddened by the failure to implement changes in the women’s reservation law earlier. But he ends with contempt rather than disappointment. “Our morale remains undiminished, our courage remains unchanged. Our resolve will not waver. The political parties that oppose the bill will not be able to stop us from increasing the representation of women in the legislature. It is only a matter of time. We may lack the numbers, but that does not mean we have failed. Our willpower is invincible and we will not be stopped if we do not deliver on our promises,” he said.
