Panaji: Chief Minister Dr Pramod Sawant on Sunday termed the opposition parties in Parliament as anti-national and anti-women for their role in defeating the Bill giving political reservation to women.
Addressing a press conference in Panaji, Sawant said that on behalf of the BJP and women workers, they strongly condemn the INDIA alliance, that is, Congress, Samajwadi Party, Trinamool Congress, and especially the DMK.
The INDIA alliance consists of anti-national parties and anti-women parties. Through this press conference today, on behalf of the Goa unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party and also the Goa government, I condemn them, he said.
BJP Goa President Damodar Naik, MLA Dr Deviya Rane, Goa Pradesh Mahila Morcha President Suvarna Tendulkar, and others were present at the press conference.
Sawant said that the Congress party, which ruled the country for 50 years, never provided 33 per cent reservation for women.
Even though the opposition party had a woman Prime Minister, it never worked towards giving proper representation to women. That is why, on behalf of the Bharatiya Janata Party, I proudly say that today the President of this country is a woman, and she was nominated by the BJP. I proudly say that if anyone has truly worked to respect women, it is the Bharatiya Janata Party. Recently, even the Chief Minister of Delhi is a woman, the Chief Minister said.
Sawant said that whether it is the Samajwadi Party, Congress, DMK, or Trinamool Congress, these are all family-run parties that only work to promote their own families. Over the past 12 years, every good initiative taken by the BJP for the country has been opposed by Congress, he said.
The Chief Minister said that the BJP introduced the Triple Talaq Bill, which they opposed. The BJP launched Beti Bachao Beti Padhao, which they opposed. GST was introduced, and they opposed it. Ayushman Bharat cards were introduced, and they opposed them. Operation Sindoor was launched, and they opposed it. Every time the BJP tried to bring reforms, Congress opposed them. That is why I say Congress is an anti-national party that has consistently worked against the nation, he added.
Sawant said that women-centric governance has been a priority under the leadership of PM Narendra Modi. Over the last 12 years, the work of empowering women has been carried out under his leadership, he said.
The Chief Minister said that out of India’s population of 140 crore, around 50 per cent are women. Therefore, I say that if anyone has done injustice to these 70 crore women, it is the INDIA alliance and its partners, he said.
The Chief Minister said that the public will definitely show them their place during elections and make them understand what it means to disrespect women and deny them reservation.
I also appeal to the women in Congress to ask their leaders why they never gave them reservation despite talking about it. They must be questioned, he said.
BJP Goa President Damodar Naik said that for a long time, attempts were made to pass this Bill. It was considered during the time of the Deve Gowda government and later during the government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee. However, even at that time, due to the same mindset, particularly that of the Congress, the Bill could not be passed, he said.
Naik said that the kind of disruptions and political drama that took place during that time is known to everyone and is also part of the official record.
In 2023, when the Bill was finally passed, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and others from his party held press conferences across the country and tried to politicise the issue, Naik said.
He said that Congress leaders described the Bill as a political move or stunt, addressing the media repeatedly and raising objections about its limitations, insisting that certain conditions and concerns needed to be addressed.
