Gorakhpur: addressing the ‘Nari Shakti Vandan’ conference, here on Wednesday, chief minister Yogi Adityanath accused Opposition parties of being “anti-women” and unwilling to grant leadership roles to women.He said the women’s reservation law, introduced under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, aims to ensure women’s participation in law-making, with effect from 2029 Lok Sabha elections, but parties like Congress, SP, TMC and DMK tried to stall it.Targeting the Samajwadi Party, Yogi cited the slogan “’Dekh Sapai, bitiya ghabraai’, claiming that before 2017, safety concerns had forced families in some regions to stop sending girls to school. He said the situation had improved significantly now.Highlighting employment data, the CM said women’s recruitment in UP Police has risen from about 10,000 (till 2017) to nearly 45,000, with 20% reservation now mandatory. Of over 9 lakh govt jobs since 2017, around 1.75 lakh have gone to women, he added.He stressed that women’s political participation was key to a self-reliant India, noting strong representation in Panchayat and local bodies.Yogi also listed welfare schemes like Beti Bachao Beti Padhao and Kanya Sumangala Yojana, calling women’s empowerment a “right, not charity”.
