NEW DELHI: A day after he threatened to consume poison over passage of women’s reservation bill, Janata Dal (United) (JDU) leader Sharad Yadav clarified his stand on it yesterday. “I am not asking for a reservation of 33 percent (for women), it could even be 50 percent. But ground realities should not be overlooked. Weaker sections among women face more difficulty.”
Sharad together with other leaders, including Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad and Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Mulayam Singh Yadav are against passage of the bill in its present form. Their demand is for a separate quota in bill for women belonging to backward classes.
Sharad said that “no quota will help” unless the scourge of casteism is addressed. He told reporters here that he would continue to protest against the women’s reservation bill in its present form. When told that his party did not have the numbers to prevent the passage of the bill, he retorted: “So what? So should I leave the Parliament?”
Sharad said in Parliament on Friday that he would “consume poison and die” if the Women’s Reservation Bill was passed in its present form. He wanted a quota for backward classes within the quota.
