Amritsar: Agitated activists owing allegiance to Punjab Pradesh Mahila Congress Committee (PPMCC) blocked roads and chanted slogans in Amritsar on Monday to protest against politicians who were opposing the Women's Reservation Bill in Parliament. Sharad Yadav, chief of Janata Dal (United), had threatened to consume poison if the Women Reservation Bill is passed in the parliament in its present form. These activists offered poison to an effigy of Yadav and burnt his effigy after beating it with slippers. "We fulfilled his desire by offering poison to his effigy and also burnt his effigy. He can die if he wants to, so that the progress of Indian women is not stopped. The progress of women is India 's progress as well," said Ratna, an activist. Meanwhile, during the discussions in the Lok Sabha, chief of Samajwadi Party (SP), Mulayam Singh also opposed the women's reservation bill in its current form. The Bill has been pending since 1999, as pro-backward parties have been demanding 'a quota within quota' for women belonging to backward, minority and scheduled caste sections stalling the bill. Women across India have been lobbying intensely for the Bill, which seeks to reserve one-third of seats for them in the lower house of parliament and state legislatures.
-June 8, 2009