DMK Leader Elangovan Urges Women's Quota in Existing Lok Sabha Seats

Senior DMK leader EVKS Elangovan on Sunday demanded that the Union Government implement the 33 per cent women's reservation within the existing strength of the Lok Sabha, describing the delay in linking the quota to an increase in parliamentary seats as an insult to women.

Speaking in Chennai to PTI Videos, Elangovan criticised the Centre's rationale of deferring the quota until the total number of parliamentary seats is expanded. He asserted that the administration should enforce the reservation immediately without waiting for a revision in the strength of the House.

Elangovan accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of misleading the public on the reservation issue. He stated that the women's reservation bill had originally been introduced by a Congress-led government in the past, noting that the Bharatiya Janata Party had opposed the legislation during that period.

During his interaction, the senior leader also targeted the TVK-led government in Tamil Nadu, evaluating its administrative performance during its first 100 days in office as negligible. He alleged that the state government had primarily engaged in renaming existing schemes and claimed its main objective was to attack the DMK.

Responding to remarks by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay regarding the defeat of alleged conspiracies against his administration, Elangovan observed that the ruling party lacks an absolute majority in the Assembly. He noted that the government depends on parties that won as part of the DMK alliance, warning that those allies could withdraw their backing if the government fails to fulfill its commitments.

Elangovan further criticised the Chief Minister for directing remarks at DMK chief M K Stalin during his absence from the House. He remarked that the Chief Minister avoided direct confrontation with the DMK leader and lacked readiness for spontaneous legislative debate, contrasting current proceedings with the political decorum maintained by past leaders like C N Annadurai and K Kamaraj.

Commenting on the controversy involving the singing of the full version of Vande Mataram at the Congress headquarters, Elangovan defended senior leader Sonia Gandhi's objections. He stated that her position aligned with the Constituent Assembly's resolution at Independence, which designated specific portions of the song to be sung.