NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Vishwanath Pratap Singh Thursday said the Indian constitution could be amended to provide 40 per cent of the seats in Parliament and state legislatures for the poor provided there was a consensus among the political parties on it.
Responding in the Rajya Sabha to clarifications sought by members on his statement about the government decisions on Mandal commission report, Singh said his suggestion on the reservation was just the kind of proposal on social changes which the future generation would expect so that the poor can make their presence felt in the “real places of power structure.”
Asserting that time had come to involve the poor in the power structure Singh said the decision to implement the report was aimed at involving backward classes in the decision making process and not just making an effort to provide more employment opportunities.
The issue of atrocities on women figured in both the houses of parliament. While in the Lok Sabha Home Minister Sayeed made a statement on the incident in which nuns of St. Mary’s school in Gajraula, were allegedly raped, in the Rajya Sabha members referred during zero hour to atrocities on women in Tripura and West Bengal states in eastern India.
The bill seeking to set up a national commission for women was also discussed in the Lok Sabha.
Sayeed said in his statement that investigations by UP government on the Gajraula incident was nearing completion. Four persons have been arrested in this connection and some looted property including some wrist watches and Rs 22,000 in cash had been recovered from them. He added
Article extracted from this publication >> August 17, 1990
