Kavitha urges political parties to push women’s quota bill

Kavitha urges 47 political parties to unite and pass Women's Reservation Bill in special session of Parliament. She highlights importance of inclusivity in democracy and calls for action from citizens to ensure women's rightful place in legislative discourse. Bill seeks to reserve 33% of seats in Lok Sabha and State Assemblies for women. Kavitha went on hunger strike in March to demand passage of Bill.

Ahead of the special five-day session of Parliament starting from September 18, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLC and former MP K. Kavitha has requested the presidents of 47 political parties having representation in Parliament, and others to press for passing the Women’s Reservation Bill this time by keeping aside their differences.

In separate letters addressed to presidents of political parties on Tuesday, she said increased women’s representation was not a matter of exclusivity but a way to build more equitable and balanced political landscape with gender equality and political empowerment in the country.

The former Lok Sabha member from Nizamabad urged the parties, particularly those having representation in Parliament, to unite and pass the long-awaited Women’s Reservation Bill.

Underscoring the pivotal role women play in the Indian discourse and the pressing need for their representation in legislative bodies, she highlighted in the letters the proof of concept provided by the 14 lakh women already active in public life, demonstrating their ability to lead and govern effectively.

She stated that her appeal to political parties was a call for action not only by politicians but also every citizen who would believe in a more inclusive and representative democracy. The collective response of the political parties would determine whether India would take to the historic step towards empowering its women and ensuring their rightful place in the legislative discourse.

Ms. Kavitha went on a hunger strike in March this year in New Delhi demanding tabling and passing of the Women’s Reservation Bill. The Bill seeks to reserve 33% of seats in Lok Sabha and State Legislative Assemblies for women.

Ms. Kavitha addressed letters to J.P. Nadda, M.K. Stalin, Mamata Banerjee, Mallikarjun Kharge, Y.S. Jangan Mohan Reddy, Nitish Kumar, Naveen Patnaik, Mayawati, Sharad Pawar, Akhilesh Yadav, Sitaram Yechury, N. Chandrababu Naidu, Y.S. Sharmila, Chandrashekhar Azad, Pawan Kalyan, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Arvind Kejriwal, H.D. Deve Gowda, Hemant Soren, Eknath Shinde, Prakash Ambedkar and others.