'Trump card designed to retain power, not to empower women'

In a sharp, politically loaded intervention, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra accused the NDA government of turning women's reservation push into a calculated electoral ploy, calling it a "Trump card" designed to retain power rather than empower women. Her remarks came during a Lok Sabha debate on bills linked to the women's quota and delimitation.

Taking a swipe at the PM's claim that BJP champions women's rights, she said: "Any woman can recognise when she is being misled."

Her question was direct: If the government is sincere, why not implement 33% reservation within the existing 543 Lok Sabha seats?


Tracing the history of women's reservation, she highlighted Congress' legacy - from Motilal Nehru's early advocacy of equal rights to Rajiv Gandhi's push for reservation in local bodies, and its eventual passage under PV Narasimha Rao.

In a moment of wit, responding to laughter from Union home minister Amit Shah and BJP MPs, she quipped that even Chanakya would be surprised by the ruling party's political cunning.