New Delhi, 17 April (H.S.):

In a pointed critique during Lok Sabha discussions on three bills linked to women's reservation, Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Dimple Yadav accused the BJP-led government of pursuing self-empowerment under the guise of women's upliftment.

Yadav, representing Mainpuri in Uttar Pradesh, reiterated SP's firm demand for distinct sub-quotas within the women's reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBC) and minority women. She reminded the House that the entire Opposition had united in supporting the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam when it passed in 2023, yet questioned why the government had failed to initiate a census in the intervening two-and-a-half years.

Had the census commenced immediately after the 2024 government formation, Yadav argued, delimitation could have proceeded, enabling implementation by 2029; instead, she charged, the regime wields the process as a political weapon rather than a vehicle for genuine female representation.

Drawing on Mulayam Singh Yadav's tenure in Uttar Pradesh, she highlighted equitable representation for SC/ST, OBC, and general-category women in panchayati raj institutions. Accusing the government of sowing confusion without caste census data, Yadav cited Assam's delimitation by the Election Commission to question procedural transparency, while spotlighting failures in women's safety, unfulfilled guarantees, Agniveer scheme woes, martyrdom concerns, and Uttar Pradesh's plight.

This government survives on facades, she asserted, declaring that the public has seen through its politics of illusion and will deliver a verdict in 2029. Until every societal segment—especially backward and minority women—gains assured participation, Yadav insisted, the bill remains incomplete.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar