A major political confrontation erupted after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation following the defeat of the Women's Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha, with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Jairam Ramesh, and Manish Tewari launching a coordinated and detailed attack on his speech.
The Opposition accused the Prime Minister of turning an official national address into a partisan political broadcast after the defeat of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, which sought to provide 33% reservation for women in legislatures.
Kharge strongly criticised the address, saying it reflected a shift in priorities away from women's empowerment. He said, "Modi ji mentioned Congress 59 times and women barely a few times. That tells the country everything about his priorities. Women are not the BJP's priority. Congress is."
He further accused the Prime Minister of misusing a national platform, stating, "A desperate and frustrated PM Narendra Modi with nothing meaningful to show for the last 12 years turned an official address to the nation into a political speech full of mudslinging and outright lies." He also said the speech focused more on attacking Opposition parties than explaining the bill's failure.
Kharge added that millions of women were watching the parliamentary proceedings closely and expressed disappointment over the bill's defeat. He said it was wrongly portrayed that Opposition parties celebrated the outcome, calling it an "attack on women's self-respect and self-esteem," and added, "Women may forget many things, but they never forget their insult."
Jairam Ramesh also criticised the address, calling it a "Congress-abuse address" and saying it lacked the sanctity of a national broadcast. He said, "This was a distress address rather than a national address," and accused the Prime Minister of using it to target Opposition parties after what he described as a legislative setback in the Lok Sabha.
Ramesh also questioned the government's stance on linking women's reservation to delimitation, calling it misleading. He reiterated that Congress has consistently supported women's reservation, including in 2010 in the Rajya Sabha and in the 2023 legislation, and challenged the government to implement it within the current Lok Sabha structure without delay.
Manish Tewari also criticised the address, saying it violated the spirit of a national communication. He called it "unfortunate and regrettable" that the platform was used to attack Opposition parties over the bill's defeat.
The controversy follows the defeat of the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill in the Lok Sabha, which required a two-thirds majority but failed to pass despite extensive debate. While the government described it as a landmark step for women's empowerment, Opposition leaders argued it was politically misrepresented and used to target them.
The issue has now escalated into a full-scale political confrontation between the BJP and Congress over women's reservation.
