Close on the heels of the Congress Government’s announcement on the launch of the Gruha Lakshmi scheme in Mysuru on August 30, Karnataka Sugarcane Growers’ Association president Kurubur Shanthakumar asked the Congress party why it was not batting for reservation to women in Parliament and State Legislatures.
Addressing a press conference in Mysuru on Sunday, Mr. Shanthakumar dared the Congress leaders like Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi to campaign for reservation of women in Parliament and State Legislatures instead of luring women deceptively with schemes like Gruha Lakshmi and Shakti.
Two of the five guarantee schemes of the Congress in Karnataka were aimed at women with Gruha Lakshmi assuring to provide a monthly financial assistance of ₹2,000 to women heads of families and Shakti providing free travel to women in KSRTC buses.
If the Congress has truly concerned about women, it should ensure 50 percent reservation to women in State Legislatures and Parliament. “Nobody in the Congres including its women leaders speak about it”, he lamented.