Reservation Bill 2019: The bill in the Lok Sabha was passed with 323 lawmakers voting for it
Lok Sabha today passed the bill to provide 10 per cent quota in jobs and education to general category candidates who belong to economically weaker sections. Most of the opposition parties backed the bill, but alleged the move to provide reservation to the economically weaker sections to be a political gimmick, in a four-and-half-hour debate. The bill, in a first, extends reservation to upper castes.
The bill will likely be presented in the Rajya Sabha tomorrow, where the bill stands a fair chance. The Rajya Sabha session has been extended till Wednesday, while the winter session of the Lok Sabha has been adjourned till the next session.
The bill in the Lok Sabha was passed with 323 lawmakers voting for it and three voting against it. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress chief Rahul Gandhi were both present and voting.
Among the opposition parties, the Samajwadi party, Telangana Rashtriya Samithi, Trinamool Congress, the Left and the Congress said they would support the bill. Among others, Naveen Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal or BJD, Telangana Rashtra Samithi and Upendra Kushwaha, who walked out of the NDA last month, supported the bill.
Asaduddin Owaisi's AIMIM and Tamil Nadu's AIADMK opposed the bill. The AIADMK walked out of the house ahead of the voting.
Here are the highlights on discussion on quota bill in Lok Sabha:
Rajnath Singh says the quota bill will help "those people who couldn't get the benefits of reservation till now"
"It's a historic bill. Those people who couldn't get the benefits of reservation till now will be benefited. It had been a demand of people since a long time. This bill has been brought in interest of the nation. I'm assured that it'll be passed in Rajya Sabha also," says Rajnath Singh, quoted by news agency ANI.
Smriti Irani calls the quota bill "historic, path-breaking"
Smriti Irani congratulated the Prime Minister, saying the "historic" measure will "help empower economically weaker sections of society."
"Committed to Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas," tweets PM Modi
"I thank MPs from all parties," tweets PM Narendra Modi
"I thank MPs from all the parties who supported The Constitution (One Hundred And Twenty-Fourth Amendment) Bill, 2019 in the Lok Sabha," PM Modi said in a tweet.
"I also appreciate those MP colleagues who enriched today's debate with their views," he said.
PM Narendra Modi tweets on passing of Quota bill
After the Quota bill passed in the Lok Sabha today, PM Narendra Modi said in a series of tweets, that it was a "landmark moment in our nation's history."
In his first tweet, PM Modi said "it sets into motion the process to achieve an effective measure that ensures justice for all sections of society."
Lok Sabha has now been adjourned till its next session
After passing the bill to provide 10 per cent quota in jobs and education to general category candidates, the Lok Sabha has been adjourned.
Lok Sabha passes bill to give 10 per cent quota in jobs and education in general category candidates
Lok Sabha has passed the bill to provide 10 per cent quota in jobs and education to general category candidates.
Omar Abdullah says bill to amend Constitution is "politically motivated"
Former chief minister Omar Abdullah Tuesday termed as "politically motivated" a bill introduced by the Centre in Lok Sabha that seeks to amend Constitution to provide 10 per cent reservation quota to economically weaker sections from the general category, according to news agency Press Trust of India.
The National Conference (NC) vice-president also trained his guns on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the government introducing the reservation bill in Parliament on the last day of the Winter Session, saying "had PM been sincere, he would not have waited for nearly four and a half years", according to PTI.
"You (BJP) have majority in Parliament for past four and half years, but you did not find it (bill) necessary. But on the last day of the last session of the current Lok Sabha, you (BJP government) bring this bill and create a new category. It is straight way poltics being done and people are being fooled", Abdullah told reporters.
10 Per Cent Reservation Will Be "Huge Relief" To Those Who Earn Less Than Rs 8 Lakh, Says Amit Shah
BJP) president Amit Shah on Tuesday said the 10 per cent reservation given to economically weaker upper caste people in jobs and education will give huge relief to those in the income bracket of less than Rs 8 lakhs, according to news agency ANI.
In an interview to ANI, Mr Shah underlined that the new reservation quota will benefit crores of youth in the country in education and employment sectors.
"It will give great relief to people who have an annual income less than Rs 8 lakhs. Crores of youth will have benefits from this reservation in education and jobs. The reservation of 50 per cent for SC, ST, and OBCs remains unaffected with this decision," he said.
TMC leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay in Lok Sabha says: "Why does the government not take up the women reservation bill with the same priority as this quota bill? This bill is not only about jobs, but also about misleading the youth with false hopes and fake dreams."
M Thambidurai, AIADMK leader, in Lok Sabha says: "Have government schemes for the poor failed? There are enough schemes. This reservation bill which you are bringing will be struck down by the Supreme Court."
"The rule of 50% only applies for reservation of backward classes," says finance minister Arun Jaitley.
As the Congress and the TMC's demand for sending the Bill again to a parliamewntary panel was rejected by the government, they staged a walkout.
The NDA government'S bill to provide 10 per cent reservation in jobs and education to economically backward sections of the general category will be passed in the Rajya Sabha despite the ruling dispensation not having adequate numbers in the Upper House, Vishwas Pathak, Maharashtra BJP spokesperson, says.
Arun Jaitley speaks in the Lok Sabha
"Just as equals cannot be treated unequally, unequals cannot be treated equally," says finance minister Arun Jaitley in the Lok Sabha.
"If communists oppose this bill which is in favour of the poor, it would be the first example of its kind in the world."
"The original preamble of the constitution did not have the word socialist but it promised justice and equality to everyone."
He quoted Congress Manifesto of 2014: "Congress manifesto said it is committed to finding a way for reservation to economically weaker sections of society without affecting the existing reservation Quota for SC, ST and OBCs."
"This reservation bill ensures 'sabka saath, sabka vikas'. It is a move for equality, will enable social upliftment."
The move to give 10 per cent reservation to the economically backward among the general category is an attempt by the government to gain electoral benefit by combining caste passions with communal polarisation, the CPI(M) says.
BJP chief Amit Shah says: "It (the reservation bill) will give great relief to people who have annual income less than Rs 8 lakh. Crores of young people will have benefits from this reservation in education & jobs. The reservation of 50% for SC, ST & OBCs remains unaffected due to this decision."
"We support this quota bill, we are not against this, but the way it is being brought raises questions on your sincerity. My request is to send this to Joint parliamentary committee first," says KV Thomas, Congress leader.
"It was yesterday that the cabinet approved Constitutional Amendment Bill for 10% quota for poor. This is a hasty decision by the government," he adds.
"This bill is not Assam-specific, it applies to all of India... Whatever's done was in the interest of the northeast and Assam," Union minister Rajnath Singh says while responding to the debate on the bill.
"Some people ask why Christians were included in the bill. But they have also suffered since the partition, so we have included them in the amended bill. How can there be a more secular bill," the minister adds.
The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2016 will amend the laws governing citizenship, formed in 1955, to grant Indian nationality to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians, who fled religious persecution from the three neighbouring countries and entered India before December 31, 2014.