Rahul Gandhi calls delimitation move anti-national in Lok Sabha

Rahul Gandhi criticised the Constitution amendment bill in Lok Sabha, alleging it aims to change India’s electoral map by reducing representation of southern and smaller states, and called the move anti-national while demanding implementation of the 2023 Women’s Reservation Act

New Delhi: Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the Constitution amendment bill has nothing to do with women’s reservation but is an attempt by the government to change the country’s electoral map by taking away representation from southern, northeastern, and smaller states, which is “nothing short of an anti-national act”.

Participating in a debate in the Lok Sabha on the three bills introduced for amendments to the women’s quota law and setting up a delimitation commission, the Congress leader said, “This is not a women’s bill as it has nothing to do with empowerment of women. This bill is an attempt to change the country’s electoral map, using and hiding behind India’s women,” he alleged.

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Gandhi said the government should bring back the 2023 Women’s Reservation Act for implementation, and the opposition will help the government pass it immediately.

He accused the government of avoiding giving power and representation to OBCs, saying that was its real agenda, and also alleged that it was trying to ensure that the caste census has nothing to do with representation for the next 15 years.

“They are scared of the erosion of their strength and are trying to rejig the Indian political map,” he said.

“The government is telling the southern, northeastern, and smaller states that for the BJP to remain in power, ‘we are going to take away representation from you’,” Gandhi said.

What the government is doing is nothing short of an “anti-national act”, Gandhi said.

“We won’t allow you to do it; the entire opposition will defeat this attempt. I want to assure the southern, northeastern, and smaller states that we will not allow the government to touch your representation in the Union of India,” he said.

Gandhi said the BJP knew that the bill could not be passed, and bringing it was a “panic reaction” because Prime Minister Narendra Modi had two objectives — to change India’s electoral map and show that he is pro-women.

Responding to the uproar from the treasury benches over his apparent reference to Modi in connection with the Balakot strike, demonetisation and Operation Sindoor, Gandhi said, “The BJP thinks that they are the people of India; they also think that they are the armed forces. You are not the people of India, you are not the armed forces, so you should not hide behind the people and the armed forces.”

The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill to tweak the women’s quota law was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday after a division of votes.

Two ordinary bills — the Delimitation Bill and the Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill to implement the proposed amended women’s quota law in Union territories of Delhi, Puducherry and Jammu and Kashmir — were also introduced in the House.