Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee had a simple question for the BJP-led government during the three-day special session on the issue of how to implement women’s reservation in legislative assemblies. Why don’t we give them 50% – now, on the current seats – without any demarcation of boundaries?
“Reservation of women can be done in one day. The problem is that you neither have the courage nor the intention to do the same,” he told the House on Friday.
Then he pushed further, saying: “The post of Prime Minister should also be reserved for women, in rotation. The post of Speaker of the House can also be reserved for women. In any case, the BJP will not return to power in 2029, so Modi Gee He cannot be the Prime Minister. We fully support 50% reservation for women.”
An argument against border demarcation
The show cut to the center of the opposition’s cause. The government has introduced three bills combining reservation for women with a delimitation process based on the 2011 census and expanding the Lok Sabha from 543 to 816, or a maximum of 850 seats. Kalyan Banerjee’s argument was that there was no need for any of that because the women’s quota law had already been passed in 2023.
“The demarcation is a political gimmick and nothing else. You have no intention of giving reservations to women. The BJP and the Prime Minister are making a dramatic move on women’s reservation,” said the MP from West Bengal, where his Mamata Banerjee-led party is locked in a battle with the BJP in elections this month.
Kalyan Banerjee also spoke about the BJP’s internal record, pointing out that only 12.91% of the party’s MPs in the Lok Sabha are women, and 16.98% of its Rajya Sabha MPs are women, which is much lower than in the TMC. “Women’s reservation is not for bargaining,” he said.
Citing historical demarcation practices, he said the government’s proposal to demarcate borders based on the 2011 census – to bypass the ongoing 2026 census – sets a precedent.
My pocket for my pocket
Earlier that day, PM Modi had mocked Kalyan Banerjee while addressing the assembly: “Arey bhai! Inko bolne dijiye, wahan pe bechare ke munh pe taala laga hua hai. Wahan Bengal mein bhi bolne nahin deta” – “Let him speak, the poor man’s mouth is shut there, he is not even allowed to speak in Bengal.” House laughed.
Kalyan Banerjee, in turn, appeared animated when his party opposed the bills aimed at expediting the quota for women. The main constitutional amendment bill did not obtain the required two-thirds majority. His presentation remained rhetorical.
