Women’s Bill: Cong picks Thakur for panel

With the BJP and RJD desperate to grab initiative on the issue—with obviously different agenda—the Congress has nominated its women’s wing president Prabha Thakur to the parliamentary standing committee set to examine the Women’s Reservation Bill.

The Congress decision to send Rajya Sabha member Thakur into the Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice comes in quick succession to the nomination of Upper House member Najma Heptullah and Lok Sabha member Devendra Prasad Yadav to the body by the BJP and RJD, respectively. Though the Congress had outsmarted the rest — both protagonists and opponents of the Women’s Reservation Bill in the original form — they have not given up the fight yet. Instead, they plan to take the fight to the standing committee.

A former deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, Heptullah can be trusted to effectively argue the BJP case in favour of reservation of seats in the legislature for women. On the other hand, the RJD can safely count on Devendra Prasad Yadav to forcefully plead for a sub-quota for Dalit, OBC and minority community women within the quota.