As lawmakers in Lok Sabha discussed three crucial bills, revamping British-era criminal laws, women MPs of the Bharatiya Janata Party pushed for gender equality in the Parliament. “Treat women equally. Is this equality? Even the chair is not treating us equally,” said Jaskaur Meena, MP from Dausa, while discussing the bills. She argued that they should be allotted proper time to speak as the redrafted bills give priority to tackling crimes against women and children. “We have been sitting here since morning. We are always here for the whole day, yet we are called at the end to speak,” the BJP MP from Rajasthan added.

“As Satya Pal Singh and Ravi Shankar Prasad discussed the bill in great detail, can’t we also discuss it elaborately?” Meena asked in the House. “We can also do it. But you have to give us enough time to do so,” she said. Meena also requested the Chief Whip ensure that female representatives are alloted earlier slots during debates. “But you are calling us at after number 15. What should we say then?” she complained. “We have prepared for the past three days, despite that we couldn’t present the whole thing that we prepared owing to less allotted time,” she expressed her disappointment to the Speaker’s chair. “It is a great crime to sit after suffering injustice. It is duty to punish, even a friend, to ensure justice,” she concluded her speech.

This came as 95 Opposition MPs have been suspended from the Lok Sabha and Home Minister Amit Shah moved a motion to discuss three crucial bills to consolidate and amend the law relating to the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure Act and the Indian Evidence Act.

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Full speech (find her remarks at 4-minute-38-second mark)