Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday criticized Lok Sabha Leader of the Congress Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury after the latter cut off BJP MP Nishikant Dubey’s remarks on the Women’s Reservation Bill.
After Sonia Gandhi, the leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party, spoke in the Lok Sabha about the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniam, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey rose to speak. Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and other opposition MPs caused a brief uproar in the House by insisting that the Government should have selected a female MP to speak.
Amit Shah intervened and took potshots at Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury for interrupting Dubey’s speech and said he may be getting “jealous” as he did not get to speak first.
“I want to ask Adhir Ranjan ji, will only women care for women, can men not speak up for them? What kind of society do you want to build? Women’s welfare, women’s concerns…brothers should be a step ahead. That is the tradition of this country. Everyone has the right to think of women’s welfare. And when Nishikant ji stood up from our side to speak, what was his (Chowdhury’s) objection? Maybe because he didn’t get the chance to speak first, he is getting a little jealous,” Amit Shah said.
The bill was earlier moved for passage in the House by Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal. The bill was introduced in Lok Sabha on Tuesday, the first sitting of the House in the new Parliament building. Sonia Gandhi, who initiated the debate on the bill, extended her party’s support and demanded its immediate implementation.
She said that a delay in implementing the bill is an injustice to the women of the country.
The Bill will be taken up for discussion in Rajya Sabha on September 21, government sources said.
