Kiren Rijiju claims Shashi Tharoor “accepted” Indian National Congress is anti-women

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has stepped up his attack on the Indian National Congress, claiming party MP Shashi Tharoor “in a way admitted” that the Congress is anti-women during a private conversation after a recent Parliament session.

Speaking to ANI, Rijiju said Tharoor told him that while the Congress “may be anti-women,” no one would consider Tharoor personally anti-women. Rijiju said he responded by agreeing with that distinction but reiterated that the party itself holds an anti-women stance.

Rijiju argued that Tharoor’s remark amounted to an implicit acknowledgment of the Congress’s position. “He meant that even if Congress may be anti-women, women would not consider Shashi Tharoor anti-women… in a way, he also accepted that Congress is anti-women,” the Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister said.

The remarks come amid a broader political clash between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the Opposition over the women’s reservation bill. The BJP has accused the Congress of opposing women’s empowerment after Opposition parties voted against the proposed legislation and related constitutional amendments.

The bill — which sought to expand the strength of the Lok Sabha and state assemblies to facilitate 33% reservation for women — failed to pass after it did not secure the required two-thirds majority, with Opposition parties raising concerns over delimitation and its potential impact on federal balance.

Congress and other Opposition parties have argued that reservation for women should be implemented without increasing the number of seats, warning that the proposed changes could disproportionately affect southern states and alter the electoral landscape.