Congress Accuses NCW of Ignoring Key Women’s Issues

New Delhi, September 8, 2026: The Congress on Tuesday accused the National Commission for Women (NCW) of neglecting serious issues affecting women and acting as a “mouthpiece” of the Narendra Modi government.

Addressing a press conference at the Congress headquarters, party spokesperson Dr Ragini Nayak Basoya, Kerala Minister Bindhu Krishna and Chhattisgarh MLA Anila Bhendia criticised the NCW over its two-day capacity-building workshop for women legislators held at Surajkund, Faridabad, on September 7-8.

Basoya questioned the decision to have Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla inaugurate a programme focused on women’s empowerment, while five women ministers present on the stage were reportedly not given an opportunity to speak.

She also alleged that women legislators were not allowed to discuss the implications of linking delimitation with women’s reservation and that Kerala representatives were heckled when they raised objections.

Krishna alleged that representatives from southern states and the Northeast faced linguistic discrimination, claiming the workshop was conducted only in Hindi without adequate English or regional-language materials or translation facilities.

Bhendia said only around 40 per cent of nearly 400 women legislators invited to the workshop attended. She also alleged that women were initially seated behind men and that the arrangement was changed following objections.

The Congress leaders said the workshop failed to adequately address issues such as domestic violence, women’s participation in policymaking, new legislation and implementation of the proposed 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament.

Instead, they alleged, the programme largely focused on praising the Modi government. They urged the NCW to use such platforms to address substantive concerns affecting women and strengthen their participation in governance.