Alliance Leaders Meet at CM’s Residence

Vijayawada:A meeting of the NDA alliance partners was held at the residence of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday, with the leaders resolving to extend united support to the Women’s Reservation Bill in Parliament.

The leaders extended an invitation to all political parties in the state, including the YSRC, to join the Central government’s renewed initiative. Parliament meets for a three-day special session from Thursday, April 16, to pass the Bill.

The meeting here was attended by the CM, Deputy CM K. Pawan Kalyan, BJP state president P.V.N. Madhav and Telugu Desam state president Palla Srinivasa Rao.

The meeting decided to organise a special event in Amaravati on April 17, where MLAs and MLCs from all parties would gather to watch Parliament proceedings on the Women’s Reservation Bill live.

In addition to public representatives, prominent women personalities would also be invited to participate in the event. The leaders also resolved to hold a solidarity meet immediately after the Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha.

The meeting, which lasted over two-and-a-half hours, witnessed detailed deliberations on recent political developments in New Delhi, with a primary focus on the proposed delimitation exercise and the Women’s Reservation Bill. The leaders also discussed the concern raised by various parties on the delimitation proposal, particularly the apprehensions about a possible seat imbalance affecting the southern states.

The Chief Minister is understood to have sought clarity from senior Central leaders, including the law minister and parliamentary affairs minister, on these issues. He is believed to have received assurances that the Bill has been designed in a manner that it does not politically hurt the southern states.

Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju clarified that any increase in the number of seats would be done on a pro-rata basis. Following these explanations, the CM, along with Pawan Kalyan and Madhav affirmed that the proposed 50 per cent increase in constituencies would not adversely affect the South.

Extensive discussions were also held on organising large-scale programmes across districts and constituencies in support of the women’s reservation bill. The alliance plans to mobilise women and the general public to express gratitude to the Prime Minister for introducing the legislation.

Naidu directed the officials to arrange live streaming of the parliamentary proceedings on the day the bill is introduced, ensuring participation and awareness across all constituencies in the state.