Sharmila Demands Women’s Quota Without Delimitation

Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee president Y.S. Sharmila on Sunday launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that the Centre was shifting its stand on the Women’s Reservation Bill for political reasons.

In a statement, Ms. Sharmila accused the Union government of linking women’s reservation with delimitation and using the issue for electoral advantage. She described the Prime Minister as an “opportunist” who brought the delimitation proposal under the pretext of women’s empowerment.

The APCC chief also criticised the BJP for blaming the Opposition and “shedding crocodile tears” over alleged hurdles to women’s empowerment. She said that though the Women’s Reservation Bill was passed in 2023, the government had failed to implement it and was now trying to amend it by tying it to delimitation.

She questioned why the Centre was targeting Opposition parties and seeking women’s support instead of directly implementing the promised 33 per cent reservation if it was genuinely committed to women’s dignity and empowerment.

Demanding immediate enforcement of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, 2023, Ms. Sharmila called for 33 per cent reservation for women in all 543 Lok Sabha constituencies without linking it to delimitation.

She asserted that the Congress party remained committed to ensuring women’s reservation.

On the issue of constituency reorganisation, she said delimitation should be carried out through a scientific and transparent process. She also demanded completion and release of the 2026 population census data, conduct of a caste census to assess the population of SC, ST, and OBC communities, and implementation of reservation norms in delimitation based on caste data to ensure political justice for backward classes.