Govt open to amendments in women's quota bill

New Delhi: The Congress-led United Progressive Alliance Government is open to amendments in the Women’s Reservation Bill.

Sources have told CNN-IBN that the Government has conveyed its desire to amend the Bill to all political parties and is trying for a consensus on the issue.

Both Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have issued whip to their party MPs to support Bill in Parliament with the Government trying for a vote on the Women’s Reservation Bill on Monday.

The Women’s Reservation Bill will grant women 33 per cent reservation in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies.

The UPA, bolstered with numbers in its favour, is confident of a smooth passage of the Bill in Parliament.

Apart from the BJP, the Left Front has also pledged its support for the Bill.

However parties like the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party have vowed to oppose the Bill in its present form.

They are demanding a quota within the quota for women from backward classes. Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee met RJD chief Lalu Prasad on Thursday.

Other key Congress strategists are working on getting all parties on board.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi met all the women MPs to work out a strategy. Congress has the numbers in the Lok Sabha but the Bill which is likely to be presented in the Rajya Sabha first, will face opposition.

“We are looking for a consensus and we hope the parties will support,” said Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily.

On quota within the quota he said: “Another legislation needs to be passed to ensure what parties like SP and others are demanding, one must understand this legislation has to be in its current form.”

Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan is confident that the Bill will be passed in Rajya Sabha on Monday, just in time for International Women’s Day.

“The Congress President Sonia Gandhi and the entire Congress party is totally committed to this very important promise made to the women of India which has been pending for more than decade now, nearly 17 years,” she said.

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“We hope that we will be able to pass it in the upper House on Monday which represents a 100 years of Women’s Day on March 8. So, it’s a historic day and we hope that this historic legislation will be passed on that day. If the main Opposition parties stand to their promise and to what they’ve said in the past, to stand with the Bill, then I don’t think there will be any problem.”

The Samajwadi Party, one of the main opponents of the Bill, continues to demand a quota within the quota for OBC women and Muslims.

“We want the party to be reserved. Women should get reservation but don’t snatch men’s right. There is not even a single Muslim male representative from several districts, then how will Muslim women get representation from there?” Mulayam Singh, Samajwadi Party chief, said.

“We will not support this Bill. How do you think Muslim women are going to find representation, there should be separate reservation for Muslim and OBC women,” he added.

The Majlis-e-Ittehad-al-Muslimin is also set to oppose the Bill. Its leader Asauddin Owaisi says a quota for women will affect the number of Muslims in the House.

“I will oppose the Bill. It will affect the Muslim constitution of the House. It’s the crass reality of our democracy, the numbers of Muslim MPs this tenure is only 29. Last time it was 34, so our numbers are going down. The candidates win election mainly because of party backing and finance and most of these national parties don’t file Muslim candidates. I will vote against the Bill because it is against the Muslim community,” said Owaisi.

But Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Ajit Singh has changed sides in favour of the Women’s Reservation Bill.

“Overall, I am in favour of the Bill. I think this time it will go through,” he said.

Parties’ strength:

In Rajya Sabha, the government needs at least 155 votes out of 233. While the Congress party has 71 members, Left parties have 22 and the BJP has 45 with 26 members belonging to other parties.

In Lok Sabha out of 544 votes, the Bill requires 363 in its favour. However, the UPA government enjoys support of 410 members.