Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab MP from Sri Anandpur Sahib, Malvinder Singh Kang, strongly presented the party’s position in Parliament on the issues of women’s reservation and delimitation. Kang clarified that the Aam Aadmi Party and its national leadership, Arvind Kejriwal, along with Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, fully support the Women’s Reservation Bill and demand that the central government implement the law, which was passed in 2023, at the earliest without any delay.
Speaking on women’s empowerment, Kang said that the teachings of respecting women have been imparted to us by the Sikh Gurus. He recalled that at a time when the practice of Sati was prevalent in the country, Guru Ramdas Ji and Guru Arjan Dev Ji raised their voices against it.
Kang further stated that when women in many developed countries did not have the right to vote, the apex Sikh body, SGPC, had already granted voting rights to women as early as 1920. Presenting his views in Parliament, Malvinder Singh Kang also cornered the central government on the issue of delimitation.
He said that a conspiracy is being hatched to diminish the political representation of smaller states like Punjab through delimitation, which he strongly opposes. Kang stated that despite having only 2% of the country’s population, Punjab made the highest sacrifices in the freedom struggle, yet due to reduced political representation, Punjab was deprived of its capital Chandigarh, and now its representation is being diminished even in institutions managing resources like the Bhakra Dam.
Kang argued that India is a union of states. When the central government appealed for population control, Punjab followed it sincerely. Today, Punjab is bearing the consequences of that population control, as its seats in the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha are being reduced on the basis of lower population.
He said that the central government, by misusing its majority, can arbitrarily carry out delimitation of seats to serve its political interests. Concluding his remarks in Parliament, Kang said that the central government should immediately implement the Women’s Reservation law on the ground, but must stop interfering with the federal structure and the rights of smaller states under the pretext of delimitation.