NEW DELHI: Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi has said that no country can achieve true progress or fulfil its potential if women are not able to express themselves freely, stressing the need to bring women's voices back into public discourse and create an environment where they can pursue what they want.

Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju responded to Gandhi's remarks, saying that the Congress party should now have no difficulty in supporting the Women's Reservation Bill in Parliament.

Responding to LoP Gandhi's remarks, Rijiju described them as a potentially positive indication of a change in the Congress party's approach towards women's political representation.

"This seems to be a positive message from the Congress Party. There's a visible change of heart in Shri Rahul Gandhi Ji about the women. Now, I hope Congress Party will support the Women's Reservation Bill unconditionally," Rijiju said.

The Women's Reservation Bill, officially enacted as the Constitution (One Hundred and Sixth Amendment) Act, 2023 (also known as Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam), is a landmark law in India that reserves 33 per cent of seats for women in the Lok Sabha (the lower house of Parliament), state legislative assemblies, and the Delhi Legislative Assembly.

This came as LoP Gandhi made the comments in an Instagram post on Friday, expanding on his response during his "Ask Me Anything" session on Thursday, where he spoke about the need to ensure greater freedom and space for women in Indian society.

Reflecting on the issue, LoP Gandhi said, "I was thinking to myself that the energy of India's women is trapped, is not allowed to express itself, is not allowed to imagine. For me, no country can be successful if its women are not expressing themselves."

He further argued that the inability of women to express themselves has a wider impact on the country's development and progress.

"And I think a lot of my politics, and a lot of what politics should be in this country, is about making people understand that our country is stunted and incomplete without the expression of women," the Congress leader added.

LoP Gandhi stressed that women's empowerment should not be restricted to their participation in business or politics, but should extend to their everyday lives, including their homes, families and public spaces.

"It is not just about women doing well in business or in the political system, but about them being able to express themselves in their homes and walk the streets comfortably," the LoP said.

He explained that women should also have the freedom to express opinions that may differ from those of people around them and to question established norms within their families and society.

"That is them putting a point of view that many others don't agree with, that is them questioning their parents, their husbands, their brothers, sisters, whatever. So a certain amount of freedom from this patriarchy, from the rigid control that India's men impose on their women, is required if India has to really develop," Gandhi said.

The exchange comes amid the continuing political debate over women's representation in India's legislative institutions and the implementation of the Women's Reservation Bill.

Meanwhile, the government on Thursday reached out to the Opposition, as Rijiju spoke to Gandhi over the phone to seek support for the reintroduction of the delimitation Bill.

Sources said that Rijiju focussed on bridging the gap on the issue, marking his third effort to discuss the issue with Rahul Gandhi during the Monsoon Session.

Rijiju tried to seek support for the delimitation Bill, insisting that the Opposition's support for its early re-introduction would speed up the implementation of the women's reservation, said sources.

The Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill, 2026 had earlier failed to pass through the Lok Sabha during the Budget session in April.

Rijiju told Rahul Gandhi that if women's reservation is not implemented, it would lead to resentment among women, according to sources.

--IANS