'Practice what you preach’, Telangana BJP chief tells K Kavitha on Women's Reservation Bill

Hyderabad: Telangana BJP President Kishan Reddy on Tuesday said the ruling BRS can raise the issue of 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and assemblies after giving adequate representation to women in the distribution of party tickets for the coming Assembly elections in Telangana.

Reacting to BRS MLC K Kavitha's letter to 47 political party leaders on the passage of the women's quota bill, Reddy told reporters here, "There is no need for writing any letter. BRS has the right to speak on the matter only after it follows it in the distribution of tickets (for the forthcoming Assembly polls)." Kavitha today made an appeal to chiefs of 47 political parties, including the BJP and Congress, urging them to unite and pass the long-awaited Women's Reservation bill in the upcoming special session of Parliament.

Union Minister Kishan Reddy had earlier attacked the BRS criticising it for "poor" representation of women in the BRS first list as only seven women were given tickets in the first list.

Last month, BRS President and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao announced 115 candidates for the total 119 seats in the upcoming assembly polls.

Asked about BRS, Congress and AIMIM also holding programmes on September 17 which is celebrated as “Telangana National Integration Day”, Kishan Reddy said it was only after the Centre's decision to officially celebrate the day, that the state government and some other political parties, "just for formality" sake were also holding programmes on that day.

He said the union government on September 17 last year officially celebrated ‘Hyderabad Liberation Day’ to mark the occasion of the erstwhile Hyderabad State under Nizam rule merging with the Indian Union on September 17, 1948.

This year the Centre will officially hold events on September 17, Kishan Reddy noted.

If the Telangana government is really sincere about holding the event, then it should hoist the tricolour in every village, every Gram Panchayat and every school, he added.

The Congress had on September 17 said the party will hold a "mega rally" near Hyderabad, where it will announce five guarantees for Telangana.

The AIMIM party also announced that it would organise a bike rally and public meeting on the occasion of "National Integration Day" on September 17.

Reddy said the 'Meri Mati Mera Desh' campaign is aimed at honouring the martyred bravehearts of the country.