The second edition of News18 SheShakti began with a promise by MP Bansuri Swaraj that the 19th Lok Sabha would see 33 per cent reservation for women.
Speaking at the session in New Delhi, the MP, who is also the daughter of late external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, said: “18th Lok Sabha is the last Lok Sabha to have this level of representation. The 19th Lok Sabha will see 33 per cent reservation because of the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam (Women’s Reservation Bill) brought in Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”
She added: “It’s [the Bill] in the pipeline. The census is about to happen and then delimitation will take place. After that, it is but normal that the Bill will become a law.”
Swaraj, who shared the stage with Shambhavi Choudhary — the youngest MP aged 25 in the Lok Sabha — also said politics was not a profession but a “way of life”.
Asked about their experience in Parliament, Choudhary said for her the journey to the Lower House was a battle against misogyny, patriarchy and stereotypes. Swaraj, meanwhile, said she was thankful to her colleagues as well as seniors who had supported her in her new role.
Also crediting her successful legal stint with preparing her for Parliament, Swaraj said: “I am grateful to my leadership and lucky to have colleagues like Shambhavi with whom I can have discussions.” Asked about what took her by surprise, she quipped that the decibel levels were too high in Parliament.
Choudhary, who hails from Bihar’s Samastipur, discussed how she was socially conditioned to appear for the UPSC exam but decided to follow in her father and grandfather’s footsteps and serve people.
Discussing Gen-Z, Choudhary said the new generation was “looking for social justice and equal opportunities”. “Gen-z is a term that describes people who have new ideas and new energy and want to make the world a better place for everyone,” she said.
The discussion soon turned political as Swaraj hit out at Congress leader and LoP Rahul Gandhi for his anti-India stance on foreign soil, narrating how even the Kauravas and Pandavas stood together when faced with an enemy from outside. She also attacked him for labelling the BJP and the RSS “anti-women”, saying she and Choudhury were proof of the government’s pro-women agenda.
Commenting on his statements, Swaraj said: “This is what happens when your research team is so weak that you end up propagating false propaganda. So far as RSS and BJP are concerned, I stand tall on the shoulders of women wo came before me and broke the proverbial glass ceiling. People like Smriti Imrani, Sushma Swaraj, Nirmala Sitharaman and Vijayaraje Scindia actually paved the path for us. PM Modi had two women as part of his CCS — Swaraj and Sitharaman. The largest number of women ministers are under his leadership.”
She added: “I say it with pride that I am a Sanghi. If the Sangh was regressive, how would I be here? He is not mistaken, he is just scared of the RSS.”
The women leaders also touched upon the need for education and focus on health to uplift women and shared the initiatives being taken by the government for women as they discussed their journeys in the field of politics.
This year’s theme for News18 SheShakti is ‘Breaking Barriers’ and will feature a stellar line-up of women leaders from politics, cinema, social work, and numerous other fields, highlighting their remarkable contributions and leadership. The event will serve as a platform for knowledge exchange and inspiration, as well as to celebrate women breaking barriers across industries.
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