Akhilesh Yadav demands fresh Census before women’s reservation rollout

Akhilesh Yadav has questioned the basis of women’s reservation, insisting a fresh census is essential before implementation. He criticised reliance on 2011 data and accused the BJP of misleading women as the Centre prepares for a 2029 rollout.

Lucknow: Samajwadi Party chiefon Sunday questioned the basis of the proposed women’s reservation, asserting that a fresh census must be completed before taking up the issue of reserving seats for women in Parliament and State assemblies.

In a post on X, Yadav said any policy must rest on accurate data, arguing that the women’s reservation framework is flawed if it relies on outdated population figures of the 2011 Census.

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“The basis of reservation is one-third of total seats, which is purely a mathematical issue depending on numbers. Numbers, in turn, must be derived from population data, and that comes from a census. If old 2011 data is used to determine the women’s population, the very foundation of the reservation becomes incorrect,” he said.

Using a metaphor, the former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister asked if the “foundation itself is faulty, how can a proper outcome be expected?”

Accusing the ruling BJP and its allies of attempting to “mislead” women, Yadav reiterated his party’s demand for conducting a fresh census before implementing women’s reservation. “Our primary objection is that a census must be conducted first, and only then should the issue of women’s reservation be taken up.”

His remarks come a day after Prime Minister Modi said that the Budget session of Parliament has been extended for three days so that the law enacted in 2023 for providing 33 per cent reservation to women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies can be implemented from 2029.

On Thursday, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, while speaking in Rajya Sabha, had said the House will meet again soon to consider a key legislation.

“We have certain bills and important issues, and we have shared this with the opposition also. We are going to have a very important bill in the next two to three weeks,” he said.