Vijayawada, April 23: Union Minister of State for Steel and Heavy Industries Bhupatiraju Srinivasa Varma on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the Congress party and its allies for what he described as their duplicitous stance on the Women's Reservation Bill, asserting that the Modi government remained firmly committed to ensuring 33 per cent representation for women in legislative bodies by 2029.

Addressing a press conference organised under the banner of 'Jana Akrosh' in Vijayawada, along with NDA alliance leaders, the Minister said that the enactment of the 'Nari Shakti Vandanam' legislation stood as testimony to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's unwavering commitment to women's empowerment. He recalled that successive governments over the past three decades had reduced women's reservation to a mere electoral promise, whereas the Modi government, since 2014, had pursued the matter with sincerity and resolve.

Bhupatiraju said the credit for introducing and securing passage of the Women's Reservation Bill in 2023 belonged entirely to the NDA government under Modi's leadership. He alleged that when the amendment bill to implement the 33 per cent reservation from 2029 was placed before Parliament, the Congress and its allies obstructed it with various pretexts, defeating it by a margin of merely 54 votes. He described this as a betrayal of the aspirations of women across the country, and accused parties with patriarchal ideologies of conspiring to prevent women from advancing politically.

Dismissing opposition claims that southern States were being shortchanged, the Minister argued that it was precisely the failure to pass the amendment bill that was causing grave injustice to the southern States, and urged opposition parties to recognise this reality and extend their support. He explained that the Modi government was undertaking the delimitation process with the objective of implementing women's reservation by the 2029 elections, well ahead of 2034, and that a population-based reorganisation of constituencies would ensure equal opportunities for all regions and women alike. He noted that women currently constituted only 12.6 per cent of the Andhra Pradesh Assembly, and stressed that reservations were indispensable to improve this figure.

TDP leader Gadde Anuradha, who also addressed the gathering, held the neglect of previous governments responsible for India's poor ranking in global indices of women's empowerment. Jana Sena leader Potireddy Sunitha said that genuine development was possible only when women entered decision-making roles, and affirmed that the alliance government in the State was committed to that goal.

Among those present were BJP State General Secretary Lakshmi Prasanna, Mahila Morcha President Nishidha Raju, and Media In-charge Kilari Dileep, among others.

AMARAVATI, April 15: A significant meeting of National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partner parties was held at the residence of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu here on Wednesday, where the alliance partners resolved to extend unified support to the Women's Reservation Bill and the Delimitation Bill currently being taken up in Parliament, hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi for what they described as landmark legislative initiatives.

The meeting was attended by Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, BJP State president P.V.N. Madhav, and TDP State president Palla Srinivasarao, among other senior leaders. The discussions, which lasted nearly two and a half hours, centred on the latest developments unfolding in New Delhi, particularly concerning constituency delimitation and the Women's Reservation Bill.

The leaders decided that all MLAs and MLCs of the alliance parties would gather at a common venue in Amaravati on April 17 to watch the passage of the Women's Reservation Bill live. It was also resolved to extend invitations to all political parties in the State, including the YSR Congress Party, as well as prominent women leaders, to participate in the event.

A programme expressing support for the Bill is to be organised immediately upon its passage in the Lok Sabha.

Addressing concerns over delimitation, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu said that he had sought and received clarification from the Central leadership, particularly Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, regarding apprehensions that southern States would not receive a proportionate increase in parliamentary seats. The Centre had categorically assured that seat allocation would follow the pro-rata method and that southern States would suffer no disadvantage, he said.

Chief Minister Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan, and BJP State president P.V.N. Madhav expressed satisfaction over the clarifications received. The leaders condemned what they described as a disinformation campaign surrounding the seat-sharing formula and resolved to politically welcome both Bills.

It was further decided to organise extensive programmes at the district and constituency levels in support of the Women's Reservation Bill, and to ensure that women across the State express their gratitude to Prime Minister Modi for the historic legislation. Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu directed that live streaming of the Bill's introduction in Parliament be arranged across all constituencies in the State.

గుంటూరు (జర్నలిస్ట్ ఫైల్): గుంటూరు జిల్లా బీజేపీ ఆధ్వర్యంలో మహాత్మా గాంధీ, లాల్ బహదూర్ శాస్త్రి జయంతి వేడుకలు కొరిటిపాడు పార్క్ సెంటర్‌లో ఘనంగా జరిగాయి. జిల్లా అధ్యక్షుడు చెరుకూరి తిరుపతిరావు నేతృత్వంలో జరిగిన ఈ కార్యక్రమానికి మేయర్ కోవెలమూడి రవీంద్ర (నాని), బీజేపీ సీనియర్ నాయకుడు జూపూడి రంగరాజు ముఖ్య అతిథులుగా హాజరయ్యారు.

భారతమాత, గాంధీజీ, శాస్త్రిజీ చిత్రపటాలకు పూలమాలలు వేసి నివాళులర్పించారు. అనంతరం పారిశుద్ధ కార్మికులకు పాదాభిషేకం చేసి కొత్త వస్త్రాలను అందజేశారు. ప్రధాని నరేంద్ర మోడీ జీవిత చరిత్రపై ఎగ్జిబిషన్, గో ఆధారిత ఉత్పత్తుల స్టాల్స్, ఖాదీ సంతను ఏర్పాటు చేశారు. మేయర్ రవీంద్ర, జూపూడి రంగరాజు రిబ్బన్ కట్ చేసి ప్రారంభించారు.

జూపూడి రంగరాజు మాట్లాడుతూ– "మోడీ 11 ఏళ్ల పాలనలో దేశం ఎన్నో రంగాల్లో అభివృద్ధి చెందింది. అంత్యోదయ పథకాలతో చివరి పౌరుడికి సాయం అందుతోంది. జీఎస్టీ తగ్గింపు వల్ల ప్రజల కొనుగోలు శక్తి పెరిగింది. స్వదేశీ ఉత్పత్తులు వినియోగిస్తే దేశ ఆర్థిక వ్యవస్థ మరింత బలపడుతుంది" అన్నారు.

మేయర్ కోవెలమూడి రవీంద్ర మాట్లాడుతూ– "మోడీ నిధుల మద్దతుతో రాష్ట్రానికి, నగరానికి ప్రాధాన్యత పెరిగింది. ఫ్లైఓవర్ పనులు వేగంగా మొదలయ్యాయి. స్వదేశీ వస్తువులను ప్రోత్సహిస్తే ఉద్యోగ అవకాశాలు పెరుగుతాయి" అని పేర్కొన్నారు.

ఈ కార్యక్రమంలో టొబాకో బోర్డు చైర్మన్ చిడిపోతు యశ్వంత్, ఐటీ సెల్ కన్వీనర్ మకుటం శివ, రాష్ట్ర కార్యవర్గ సభ్యులు ఈదర శ్రీనివాస్ రెడ్డి, శనక్కాయల అరుణ, జిల్లా సంయోజకుడు భీమినేని చంద్రశేఖర్, పాలపాటి రవి, వెలగలేటి గంగాధర్, కొత్తూరి వెంకట సుబ్బారావు, నేరళ్ళ మాధవరావు, పాండు రంగావిఠల్, టీవీ రావ్, చరక కుమార్ గౌడ్, డా. శనక్కాయల ఉమాశంకర్, బజరంగ్ రామకృష్ణ, దేసు సత్యన్నారాయణ, తోట శ్రీనివాసరావు తదితరులు పాల్గొన్నారు.