The regular disruption of Lok Sabha proceedings ended on Thursday afternoon, after Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee in a meeting with the Yadav trio, along with Mamata Banerjee and DMK leader T R Balu, promised to convene an all-party meeting to discuss the Women's Reservation Bill. The House proceedings then went on smoothly.
Earlier, both the houses of Parliament were thrown into turmoil as RJD, SP and JD-U leader Sharad Yadav demanded reservation within reservation for women belonging to Muslim and OBCs and the Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee promising to call another all-party meeting before the bill is moved for consideration in Lok Sabha.
The Rajya Sabha was adjourned till noon, as BJP and Left Parties persisted with their demand for revocation of suspension of 7 MPs who had obstructed the passage of Women's Reservation Bill. The chairman Hamid Ansari said there was a process for revoking such suspension, and as the Leader of Opposition Arun Jaitley has proposed revocation, the government was looking into it. Left leaders Sitaram Yechury and D Raja also demanded revocation of suspension. As the uproar continued, the chairman adjourned the Question Hour.
In the Lok Sabha, Speaker Meira Kumar allowed the Yadav trio to place their views on Women's Bill. “This Bill will sound the death knell of the political life of all male MPs as they will be unable to retain their seats in the next elections”, thundered RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, as the Congress, BJP and Left benches sat listening to him silently. “How will the rotation of seats be done? Who will conduct the lottery for rotation? Aap sab logon ka sathyanaash ho jayega”, said Lalu ominously.
As Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh and Pranab Mukherjee sat listening to the Yadav trio's venom against the Bill in silence, Lalu Prasad thundered: “These BJP MPs have told me they are being forced to sign their death certificates. You people are making fun of the Yadav trio. Social Justice is our agenda”, said Lalu.
“Do not forget, 80 per cent of these very Muslim women have voted you to power”, said Lalu turning towards the Congress benches. “You are going to deprive them and the poor women getting wages under NREGA from reservation”, he said as he raised the polemic level a bit higher.
Mentioning Rahul Gandhi's Kalawati, the poor woman who got help after Rahul raised her issue in Parliament, Lalu Prasad said, “You are depriving your young, rising leader Rahul Gandhi's Kalawatis from reservation”.
All the three Yadav leaders demanded all party meeting before bringing in the legislation in Lok Sabha, followed by reservation within reservation for Muslim and OBC women.
Said JD-U chief Sharad Yadav: “I do not bother about my future, but the fate of each male MP sitting here is going to be sealed after this bill becomes law. We will not bow before marshal law (referring to eviction of 7 MPs by marshals in the other house)”.
Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav said, the House should be more worried about price rise and from the threat from China, rather than dividing the country through this Bill.
Responding to the Yadav trio, Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee said much discussion on the Women's Bill has already taken place, and the government was still ready to call an all-party meeting to narrow down the divergences and differences. “But nothing can be achieved by stalling the work of the House”, he added.
