Uttar Pradesh: Poetry, banter and bonhomie in House when women get it to themselves

LUCKNOW: When women of the House got it to themselves for a day, poetry, repartee and poise flowed freely throughout the debate in Uttar Pradesh assembly on Thursday.
The debate began with former basic education minister Anupama Jaiswal reciting a couplet: "Haare nahin jab hausle, toh kam hue kuchh phasle, doori nahi koi hamein samarpan chaahiye, kuchh kar gujarne ke liye mausam nahin mann chaahiye (When the will wasn’t lost, a lot of ground was covered; nothing is far when we have devotion, a lot of heart and not the right season is needed to achieve something)."
From the Opposition benches, SP MLA Ragni Sonkar, too, began with a couplet, "Din ki roshni guzar gayi khwaabon ko banane mein, raaton ki neend guzar gayi bacchon ko sulane mein, jis ghar mein mere naam ki takhti bhi nahin, saari umr guzar gayi uss ghar ko sajaane mein (The daylight was spent in realizing dreams, night’s sleep in putting kids to bed; all my life was spent in decorating a house which didn’t even have my name at its gate)."

She later raked up the issues related to crime against women and how government schemes, like medical compensation to the poor, are actually not benefitting the needy.
Interestingly, jailed ex-minister Gayatri Prajapati’s wife Maharani Prajapati took this opportunity to request the CM Yogi Adityanath to ensure her husband gets justice. With a choked throat, she said with folded hands, “I have two daughters to marry off; how will I do it alone?”

Presiding over the chair, BJP’s Manju Siwach urged Maharani to present her case either before the CM or Speaker Satish Mahana.

Several other SP members, like Saiyada Khatoon, raked up the issue of the survey of unregistered madrassas and said that the government should know that over 1,200 students have passed NEET studying in such madrassas. She said that these madrassas are run through donations given by people like her.
SP MLA Puja Saroj emphasized on the need to push women literacy and education initiatives. Calling them as the instruments which will enable women to lead a self-reliant life, she said the steppingstone to real change is education.
Minister Gulab Devi listed out initiatives launched by the Yogi government for empowering the daughters from their birth to the time they get married. She also said that the government was extending support to women in need such as single mothers and widows.
Public representatives from various sides acknowledged the role and contribution of women workers across different areas during the proceedings. Paying rich tributes to the hard work put in by field workers such as Anganwadi and ASHAs and those working in different levels of the government machinery and policing, the MLAs said that it was the combined energy of all these women which drives a nation.
The day also saw some lighter moments. For instance, SP MLA Mehboob Ali demanded time from the Speaker to voice his feelings on the cause and status of women.
BJP MLA Anupama Jaiswal found an opportunity to take a jibe at this. "Your name is Mehboob and I assume that this desire to speak out of turn for women comes from the fact that you are a ‘Rehnuma Mehboob’ (leader beloved) to all women," she said.
Another moment came when SP MLA Vijama Yadav was asked to read her listed matters and she faced some difficulty (probably because she had forgotten her glasses).
Speaker Mahana offered the MLA his own pair to help. It didn’t help though, and she could not make her presentation eventually.