Belagavi: Karnataka Women and Child Welfare Minister Laxmi Hebbalkar launched a sharp attack on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing them of failing to implement the Women's Reservation Act despite its unanimous passage in Parliament in 2023.
Addressing a press conference here on Monday, Hebbalkar alleged that the BJP, which she described as ideologically aligned with the RSS, deliberately delayed the legislation's implementation. She claimed that the RSS promotes a view rooted in the Manusmriti, which, she said, confines women to domestic roles.
Referring to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, the minister alleged that statements discouraging women's political participation reflected the broader ideological stance of the organisation. "This mindset of keeping women confined to the kitchen is the reason why women have been denied opportunities, even after the reservation law was passed," she said.
Allegations of Political Motives
Hebbalkar further contended that the BJP introduced the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam with political motives. According to her, the move was aimed at portraying the Congress as anti-women ahead of recent elections in states such as West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, as BJP knew it would fail to gather three-fourth of the votes. She alleged that the proposed delimitation process was being strategically linked to the women's reservation law to favour the BJP electorally.
"We support 33% reservation for women in the 543-member Lok Sabha, but the BJP's approach raises concerns about its intent," she said, accusing the party of prioritising electoral gains.
Criticism of Electoral Roll Revision
The minister also criticised the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Belagavi district. Citing figures from her Belagavi Rural assembly segment, she claimed that while 92% of the mapping work had been completed, more than 23,000 voters risked losing their voting rights due to discrepancies.
She noted that only five of the district's 18 assembly constituencies had crossed the 90% mark in the exercise, while progress in others remained significantly lower. In Belagavi North, she said, the mapping had not even reached 65%.
Alleging irregularities in the process, Hebbalkar claimed that in several cases, newly married women were being incorrectly marked as 'absconding', effectively removing them from voter lists.
