'Sad day': Priyanka Chaturvedi breaks party line over women bill defeat in Lok Sabha

NEW DELHI: Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi on Friday took a position that differed from her party, expressing disappointment over the defeat of the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha. She described it as a setback for women aspiring to enter Parliament and state assemblies.The Constitution Amendment Bill, which aimed to implement reservation for women in legislatures by 2029 and expand the strength of the Lok Sabha, failed to pass in the Lower House. While 298 MPs voted in favour, 230 opposed it. The bill fell short of the required two-thirds majority, needing 352 votes out of the 528 members who participated. Reacting on X, Chaturvedi said it was a "sad day for India’s women who hoped to find representation in Parliament or assemblies." She added that her position on women’s reservation has been consistent and that she would continue to voice it."I have a stand on women’s reservation and consistently have had it and I will continue to express it. Deal with it," she wrote in the next post.Internet users soon pointed out her opposing stand with her party and remarked that she will "soon get a RS seat from BJP". The leader, however, refused to back down and wrote: "Are you drafting the invite?" The proposed amendment sought to increase Lok Sabha seats from 543 to a maximum of 850 to facilitate the implementation of women’s reservation ahead of the 2029 general elections, following a delimitation exercise based on the 2011 Census.A day earlier, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray had urged the Centre to immediately implement the 2023 law providing 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, while calling for a pause on the delimitation process.In a brief statement, the former Maharashtra Chief Minister said delimitation was not about the political future of any one party, but about the future of the country.