• BJP to hold scooter rallies, signature drives and missed call campaigns ahead of special Parliament session
• State president says reservations to kick in after delimitation; alliance partners to join outreach
• Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam described as historic; previous governments faulted for inaction

VIJAYAWADA: Bharatiya Janata Party Andhra Pradesh president PVN Madhav on Sunday announced that the party would undertake a series of state-wide programmes in support of the Women's Reservation Bill, formally known as the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam. He was addressing a press conference at the party's state office in Vijayawada.

Mr. Madhav described the legislation as a landmark decision in the country's history and a crucial step towards women's empowerment. He said it was a matter of pride that the Bill had received near-unanimous support in both Houses of Parliament under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and criticised previous governments for having failed to translate similar intentions into legislation despite repeated attempts.

He stated that the party had set its sights on ensuring full implementation of women's reservations by the 2029 elections, following the completion of the census and the delimitation of constituencies. He added that necessary amendments would be taken up during the special session of Parliament scheduled for the 16th, 17th, and 18th of this month.

Outlining the outreach initiatives planned in support of the Bill, Mr. Madhav said the party would organise women's rallies, public meetings, and scooter rallies across the State. Wall writing, signature collection drives, and missed call campaigns would also be conducted to mobilise public support. He added that these programmes would be carried out in coordination with alliance parties.

BJP Mahila Morcha State president Nishidha Raju said that providing one-third representation to women in Parliament was a matter of honour. She noted that the Central government was implementing several welfare schemes aimed at women's empowerment, including Mudra, Poshan, Anganwadi, and vaccination programmes.

The press conference was attended by BJP State General Secretary Saligrama Lakshmi Prasanna, State Secretaries Boddu Nagalakshmi, Kambhampati Madhavi, K. Padmaja, N. Lakshmi Durga, CH Shivalалита, and D. Swathi Rao, among others.