The Congress has been reiterating its demand that the Women's Reservation Bill must be passed during the special session of Parliament which is set to start from September 18. Congress former chief Sonia Gandhi who will be attending the Parliament Special Session also asserted that the Bill was Congress' brain child.
On Tuesday, while the Congress leader was entering the old Parliament building, she said, "It is ours, Apna Hai."
Rahul Gandhi's letter to PM in 2018
Congress also released the letter written by its former president Rahul Gandhi to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 16, 2018, demanding immediate passage of the Women's Reservation Bill. Senior Congress leader P Chidambaram posted on 'X', "If the government introduces the Women's Reservation Bill, it will be a victory for the Congress and its allies in the UPA government. Remember that this bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha on March 9, 2010 during the UPA government. In its 10th year, BJP is reviving the bill which it had suppressed in the hope that the voice over the bill will die down.'
On Sunday, in a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the Congress Working Committee has demanded that the Bill must be passed during the five-day special session of Parliament and shared some points on the issue. "Rajiv Gandhi first introduced Constitution Amendment Bills for one-third reservation in panchayats and nagarpalikas in May 1989. It passed in Lok Sabha but failed in Rajya Sabha in September 1989," Ramesh said.
He said Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao reintroduced Constitution Amendment Bills for one-third reservation for women in panchayats and nagarpalikas in April 1993 and both Bills passed and became law. "Now there are more than 15 lakh elected women representatives in panchayats and nagarpalikas. This comes to about 40 per cent," the Congress leader said. "As PM, Dr Manmohan Singh brought a Constitution Amendment Bill for one-third reservation for women in Parliament and state legislatures. Bill passed on March 9, 2010, in Rajya Sabha. But it was not taken up in Lok Sabha," Ramesh said.
