Oppn demands quota within quota as Reservation Bill tabled, furore over Kharge's 'choosing weakest women' remark

Kharge’s comments in Rajya Sabha that 'all Indian parties choose the weakest women' to fight elections and they are not allowed to even speak, invited sharp criticism from the BJP benches, including FM Sitharaman.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday “welcomed” the new Women’s Reservation Bill but raised the pitch on quota within quota for OBC women, saying it will be an injustice to them if they remain unrepresented.

Kharge’s comments in Rajya Sabha were backed up by party General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal who asked the government to ensure representation of backward communities is guaranteed and absence of quota for OBC women will not complete the social justice agenda.

Though supporting the new bill introduced in Parliament, top Congress leaders’ remarks come against the backdrop of the party’s commitment to quota within quota articulated in the Udaipur Chintan Shivir Declaration and Raipur Plenary resolution on social justice. 

The Congress’ pitch also comes as the party has shunned its anti-Mandal posturing and has been off late advocating the need for a Caste Census and proportional reservation. 

The Congress stand would be music to the ears of parties like Samajwadi Party and RJD, which have been demanding a quota within quota for OBC women. SP chief Akhilesh said in a tweet, “Women’s quota should be a balance of gender justice and social justice. In this, reservation for backward, Dalit, minority, tribal women should be clear in definite percentage form.”

RJD’s Manoj K Jha said if the idea is to empower women, then there should be a quota within quota for OBC women too. The strong opposition by parties like SP and RJD had prompted the then UPA government not to take up the Bill in Rajya Sabha.

Venugopal tweeted, “the Bill doesn’t account for reservation for women from OBC communities. Without that, it is incomplete in its social justice agenda. The government should ensure that along with women’s reservation, representation of India’s backward communities is also guaranteed.

Kharge’s comments in Rajya Sabha that “all Indian parties” choose the “weakest” women to fight elections and they are not allowed to even speak, invited sharp criticism from the BJP benches, including Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman who said it was a “sweeping statement” which was “unacceptable” as they all are “empowered women”.

Speaking after Narendra Modi who sought support for passing the Bill which would come to Rajya Sabha after the Lok Sabha clears it, Kharge said the Prime Minister may not give the Congress the credit for passing a similar bill in Rajya Sabha in 201o, which could not be taken forward.

In this context, he said the reason for the inability to move forward was the demand for a quota for OBC women within the women’s quota. He said it was easy to provide quota within quota for Dalits and tribals, who had seats reserved for them, but that was not the case for the OBCs.

“The issue regarding the backward classes is that unless there is a constitutional provision to extend these reservations to them, their women would not be able to avail it.  And if you don’t do this, it will be an injustice to the backward classes,” the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha said.

Indicating that women from the OBCs and other deprived sections may lose out to those from the elite class, he said there are not so many educated women among the under-privileged and the tickets are given to the weakest women.

In comments that attracted immediate protest from the BJP women MPs, he said those women who are capable and fight an election are getting tickets and one has to give one-third ticket to them. “We know how SC, ST and OBC candidates are chosen in all parties,” he said.

“This is why women remain backward, you do not give a chance to them,” he said.

As Sitharaman objected and referred to President Droupadi Murmu and said that such remarks were coming from the Congress that had a woman president not so long ago, Kharge shot back, “SC, ST and OBC women are not getting the opportunities you are getting.”

The Social Justice and Empowerment Resolution adopted at the Raipur Plenary in February this year has said that the Congress “shall ensure its (women’s bill) with appropriate provision for reserved categories within the 33%”.

In May 2022, the party had during Udaipur Chintan Shivir demanded that the women’s bill be passed “as soon as possible and women of every category should get the benefit of proportional reservation”.