By Interview:
M D ABDUL
(Editor-Tollywoodtimes)
In the political arena, everyone who hears Note now has the same question. Who is it? Why is it rushing so much? Yes, and if there is a plan, it is not that difficult to achieve the desired goal. To achieve the desired goal, not words, but actions are needed. As soon as she stepped into the Congress party, she served as ZPTC…Child Welfare Department Joint Nalgonda District ZP Standing Committee Chairman…District Planning Committee (DPC) Member…Panchayati Raj Mahila Shakti Abhiyan State General Secretary…United State Mahila Congress Vice President for two terms…and Pradesh Congress Committee Member…Bhuvanagiri Parliamentary Disha Committee Member…Telangana State Mahila Congress State Vice President…State Mahila Congress In-charge Coordinator…Currently Yadadri Bhuvanagiri District Mahila Congress District President…What is this all about? Many, many positions have come her way. Always for the party…for the workers who believed in the party…she is constantly working on public issues. She is none other than Neelam Padma, a senior leader of the State Mahila Congress. Recently, we met her and discussed in detail about the political activities she is undertaking. The details are in her own words for you…
How did your political career go?
-When my husband Neelam Venkataswamy was the Congress Party in-charge of Aleru constituency, due to the reservation for women in Aleru ZPTC, the late elders and senior Congress leader Uppunutala Purushottama Reddy gave me a ticket to contest as ZPTC and greatly encouraged women to grow politically.
How did you come up with the idea of entering politics?
– My husband Neelam Venkata Swamy was already active in Congress and politically active. He was in a high position and was constantly working for the party, so I got the opportunity of Aleru Mandal ZPTC as a woman. The high command asked me to contest as ZPTC. Then I thought about it and came forward to contest politically.
Who inspired you in politics?
-It is no exaggeration to say that I have been inspired by my husband, Neelam Venkata Swamy. Without him, my political career would not have been possible. I can definitely say that the opportunity I got as a ZPTC while I was working as a teacher was due to my husband, Venkata Swamy.
What is the support you have received from the positions you have held in the Congress Party?
– In the Congress Party, I am a ZPTC. As the Chairman of the Joint Nalgonda District ZP Standing Committee of the Child Welfare Department… As a member of the DPC District Planning Committee… As the State General Secretary of the Panchayat Raj Mahila Shakti Abhiyan… As the Vice President of the Joint State Mahila Congress for two terms… And as a member of the Pradesh Congress Committee… As a member of the Bhuvanagiri Parliamentary Disha Committee. As the State Vice President of the Telangana State Mahila Congress. As the In-charge Coordinator of the State Mahila Congress… I continue to be the District President of the Yadadri Bhuvanagiri District Mahila Congress.
How do you feel about the encouragement you receive from your family politically?
-2000 – I will get full support from my family politically till 2025. So today I am at the forefront of everything politically. My family will always support me. My family is my strength.
How is the development of Aleru constituency under the leadership of your MLA Beerla Ailaiah?
-Our MLA Beerla Ailaiah garu is a man of the people. He is constantly working to solve public problems. Wherever anyone faces any danger, he immediately responds and solves it. That is his specialty. That is why the people consider our MLA Beerla Ailaiah garu like a god. He is efficiently carrying out his great responsibility as the government whip under the rule of CM Revanth Reddy. As a result, the name of Aleru constituency is changing. Under his leadership, the development of the constituency is moving forward in all fields.
What is your opinion on the Congress rule led by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy?
-Telangana is moving in the right direction and direction. People are very happy with the Congress rule under the leadership of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy. The state is moving towards development in all sectors. Under the Congress rule, women are getting due respect and a proper place in every way.
What kind of importance do you think women receive in today’s society?
– Women empowerment is still not coming in our India. Women are seen as a luxury. Despite many obstacles, they continue to prove themselves as powerful women in their respective fields. Despite the fact that personality degradation is happening, they continue to make a mark for themselves in society. We should realize that we are all praising and misleading them by saying that women’s progress is the progress of the country. The rulers who say that women’s equality is in the interest of society should give them equal respect and provide more encouragement to enter the legislatures. There is no doubt that the male society has failed to not only inspire women, but also fill them with self-confidence and take them forward on an equal footing with us. Now, we should remember that women should take this as a challenge and fight for their rights.
What is your opinion on the current Modi-led BJP rule in the country?
-It is the responsibility of democratic governments to stand by the people. In contrast, the BJP government under Modi’s leadership is implementing a policy that benefits corporates and market forces. As a result, who is responsible for the mistakes of the rulers should be held accountable. When corporates take the reins, it becomes a burden on the people. Laying roads, building projects, establishing industries, managing the railways, LIC, postal and telecom sectors all become a burden. That is why governments should take decisions thinking about the welfare of the people and not about the profits of corporates. We are ahead in the agricultural sector. We are at the level of providing food to the world. It is not right for Modi to forget that and push for foreign investment. Because of the good done to corporates, we cannot talk about social responsibility, social issues, or for that matter, humanity. The government itself implemented investments in the public sector, industries in the public sector, employment in the public sector, job opportunities, and welfare programs. There has been no economic recession in India since 1980. Foreign exchange reserves were depleted, gold was also being sold, and countries around the world had to rely on each other for loans. Against this backdrop, India had to knock on the door of the World Bank for a loan. As a result of the loan taken under the conditions of the World Bank, the government started to shirk its welfare responsibilities and treat every need of the people as a commodity. In the 32 years since the introduction of economic reforms in 1991, everything has become a commodity. The government has become a mere facilitator. Finally, the central government has also set up a Ministry of Disinvestment to sell public sector companies and give them to corporates, which shows the seriousness of the situation. While corporates were in search of the necessary investments due to the global economic recession… the World Bank had its eyes on various types of reserves and pension fund reserves held by the government in addition to India’s public sector industries. Along with industries, the natural wealth of this country has also been overlooked by the World Bank. Every time it has gone bankrupt, the government has shirks its responsibilities and has pressured the private sector to make allocations in the name of reforms. As a result, we have become extremely poor today. As part of this, it is cutting subsidies given to the people. It is increasing prices. It is bringing anti-farmer laws. Land, mines, railways, airports, ports, air, water, milk… everything that was previously considered natural wealth and public sector enterprises… is becoming private services. The government is withdrawing from all sectors and is being handed over to corporates. Due to this, hundreds of rupees are being collected in the name of user charges in the future. There is a situation where fees have to be paid even for entertainment. The way the government is turning everything into a commodity is becoming a burden on the people. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is constantly raising his voice on this. He is fighting on behalf of the people for the country. For this, the Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy government is fulfilling its responsibility and continuing to provide support to Rahul Gandhi.
What is your opinion on the main issues currently plaguing the country?
-Delimitation fears, major issues like census, GST, unemployment, medicine prices, and rising prices of essential commodities are currently plaguing the country. Mainly, there is a lot of discussion on delimitation now. There is concern that seats will decrease in the southern states based on population. The BJP government is not giving clarity on this. However, the Telangana BJP leaders say that the seats will not decrease. So far, they are acting like a cat on a wall without clarifying whether the existing seats will decrease or whether the increased seats will decrease. Like America, India is also a federal state with a democratic system. They recognized the fact that providing representation according to the population ratio in 1971 would lead to unexpected dangers. However, instead of finding a solution, it was postponed until 2026. The last census was held in 2011. The next census was supposed to be held in 2021, but it was postponed due to the Covid outbreak. The census has not been conducted since 2021 on some pretext. In this context, the re-division of Lok Sabha constituencies is to be done after the census in 2026. The number of seats allotted to each state will also be decided only then. Some states will be given benefits for uncontrolled population growth. There is a campaign that states that have achieved the target of an absolute fertility rate of 2 percent or less will be punished with a reduction in seats. It is now clear that it is not just a population-based approach but a middle ground. The hardships faced by the poor and middle class people with GST should be discussed. Because the ruling party is trying to collect money like the Kabuliwalas. After fighting for ten years, even after increasing the income tax to Rs 12 lakh, they have made mistakes. Economic issues that have a serious impact on the middle class people are not being discussed in Parliament. BJP MPs are not paying attention to the problems faced by the people. They are kneeling before Modi like ants. They are spending their time chanting “Aha Modi..Oh Modi”. There is no discussion on the problems faced by the people. Even if someone discusses it, they do not pay attention to it. Why is Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman trying to silence the opposition with a counterattack? Her counterattack speech in the last Parliament session on GST is proof of this. The central government’s imposition of 18 percent GST on life and health insurance policy premiums is extremely evil. It is inhuman for a government that is supposed to stand by the people when disaster strikes, to see even that hardship as a way to fill the coffers! Despite opposition from within its own party and senior leaders criticizing this decision, the Modi government still wants to suck the people’s tears and make them cry even in difficult times. That is why the Congress opposition is describing this decision taken by the central government as tax terrorism. In GST, taxes can be imposed on various goods and services from zero to a maximum of 28 percent. It is noteworthy that the Centre, which is the second from the last in this list, levies 18 percent GST on insurance policies, but collects only 3 percent tax on gold and 0.25 percent on diamonds. For some years, insurance companies have been increasing premium amounts arbitrarily, citing various reasons. The central government has not made any attempt to control this increase so far. If two years ago, a 22-year-old person had to pay Rs 10,000 as premium for an insurance amount of Rs 5 lakh, last year the premium reached Rs 15,000. As this is becoming a burden beyond their heads, many people are canceling their policies. Now, with the imposition of 18 percent GST, there is widespread anger over the central government’s decision. Even Union Minister Nitin Gadkari raised this in the past, but he was dismissed like a fly. His suggestions were not valued. There are concerns that this will further increase the burden on policies. If that happens, there is a risk of becoming a diseased country, no matter how much the goal of Vikasit Bharat is achieved by 2047. Aside from health policies, schemes like Ayushman Bharat given by the government will have to depend on the health benefits given by the state governments. This is becoming more and more encouraging for corporate hospitals. The ruling classes implementing neoliberal policies have weakened the government medical system across the country as a strategy. They have made it necessary for the common man to depend on the private sector for medical services. As profit calculations are the key for the private sector, medicine has become unaffordable for the common man. Although the central government is talking about bringing the government medical sector back to its feet, they are not being implemented in practice. This situation has increased the need for insurance in the medical sector. Due to changes in lifestyle and increasing healthcare costs, buying health insurance and life insurance policies has become a must. The then Union Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary told the Lok Sabha that the government collected Rs 8,263 crore in the last financial year on health insurance premiums alone. As if that were not enough, the Centre is planning to collect more from the people. It is estimated that Rs 24,000 crore is reaching the central coffers annually by imposing 18 percent GST. It is not right to see the treasury being filled with the blood and flesh of the people. The central government should immediately withdraw this evil decision. The only solution is to fight against it. Or the Centre itself should take a decision on this and lift GST on life insurance and health insurance policies. The Modi government should realize that imposing GST on policies that poor and middle class people buy with their blood and flesh is nothing but evil.
What are your thoughts on the redistribution of Lok Sabha constituencies that is leading to unrest?
-This can be described as BJP’s redistricting politics. BJP is not able to gain much ground in the South. It is difficult to gain a foothold in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. No matter how hard it has tried in the last decade, it is becoming difficult to win a single seat. In this order, the redistricting of Lok Sabha constituencies is leading to new concerns. The redistricting of constituencies is done on the basis of population. However, the concern that the Assembly and Parliament seats will decrease instead of increasing is now causing concern among the leaders of the South. If we take the 2011 census, the population has still decreased in the South. According to this census, there is a risk that the seats should have increased and decreased. This re-districting, which should have been done constitutionally, will turn into a political division, which has now become a matter of debate. According to Article 82 of the Constitution, a census should be conducted once every ten years. The number of legislative constituencies and their boundaries will have to be amended according to the changes. Because a vote should have the same value in all states, whether the population is high or low. The 42nd Constitutional Amendment brought during the Emergency froze the redistribution of constituencies. At that time, special focus was placed on population control. States were encouraged to take measures to reduce the population. At that time, if the southern states had an increase of 6 to 10 percent, it was 12 to 15 percent in the northern states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, U.P. and Bihar. Therefore, it was decided to speed up population control measures and take up redistribution only after twenty years. At this time, it was not right to reduce seats if the population decreased, so the number of parliamentary seats was frozen until 2001. Therefore, despite many changes in the composition of the seats, there was no change in the total number of MPs. Except for the change in boundaries, the process of redistribution of constituencies was postponed until 2026, without changing the number of seats in each state. With this, the process was stopped. Now the census, delimitation of constituencies, and women’s reservation have to be implemented. At this time, chaos is brewing. There is a concern that if the existing seats are reduced, they will lose their hold in Parliament. In fact, this is a crucial issue. It is also a policy decision. There should be a transparent and comprehensive discussion on such key issues. When the leaders of the South are expressing their concerns, the Center is not making a clear statement. It is the central government’s moral duty to avoid unilateral decisions. There are also suspicions that there is some evil idea that it is better to reduce the seats since there is no benefit from the South. There are also many allegations that the BJP is trying to centralize power in a way that resembles a presidential style. At the same time, steps are needed to ensure that everything is done according to the constitutional procedure. Delimitation of constituencies is leading to new challenges. The delimitation that should be done after the census according to the Constitution has become doubtful for many reasons. They are criticizing that the number of seats in the southern states will decrease, and even if they increase, their share will not increase. However, Home Minister Amit Shah has announced that no one’s seats will decrease. Telangana CM Revanth Reddy is strongly demanding that the real basis for the re-division be revealed. He is furious that the BJP and the central government are making political conspiracies against the south. Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also commented that Amit Shah’s bluffs cannot be trusted. He accused the center of using the weapon of re-division to silence the southern states. He questioned whether the current seats will be based on the current population if the center is truly sincere. CPM Politburo member Brindakarat also commented that the center should discuss with everyone and take a step and remove doubts. However, at a time when preparations are being made to hold simultaneous elections with the Jamili Election Bill, clarity on this concern is needed. After 1976, the southern states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, the united Andhra Pradesh, and later A.P. and Telangana have made significant progress in reducing their population. In Tamil Nadu, the fertility rate was 2.0 as early as 2001. This means that the population has reached a stabilization stage. Judging by Amit Shah’s statement, it seems likely that this process will be undertaken in 2026. However, if seats are decided only based on population, then seats in the south, which has a low population, will decrease, while those in states like U.P. and Bihar, which already have a very high population, will increase. There are other differences if we look at the average population. For example, Telangana, which has a population of four crores, has 17 Lok Sabha seats. Bihar, which has a population of 12.6 crores, has 40 seats. On average, Telangana has one seat for 23 lakh people, while Bihar has one seat for 32 lakh people. If this is increased proportionally based on population, this difference can become even greater depending on that formula. These changes will have a huge impact not only technically but also politically. No matter how much the BJP has tried, it has not been able to increase its strength enough to come to power on its own in the South. Except in Karnataka, it is dependent on direct and indirect allies in other places. At a time like this, there are doubts as to whether it will go ahead with a political agenda of increasing seats in the North and reducing seats in the South in the name of re-division.
How do you think the laws enacted to protect women are working?
-We cannot provide protection to women unless we bring in stricter laws to protect them. The rulers need to act more strictly to prevent murders and rapes. In our country, which respects women, there is nothing that has been done for women. Making a tribal woman the President is something to be commended. All this is not unknown to the respected Prime Minister Modi. Even if the Women’s Bill is passed… (It remains a bitter pill. After the census, de-limitation was added to it. With this, we have to wait for another two or three years. Mainly, women should be given a big place in job and employment guarantees. They should also be provided with free education. Interest-free loans should be provided to those who go for higher education. Women’s conferences are being organized… Despite talking a lot about women, special programs for their development are not being taken forward. Beti Padao… Beti Bachao has become a slogan. No special incentives are being implemented for girls’ education and sports at the center. It would have been better if special loans and interest-free schemes had been implemented for girls’ education. There are no jobs. At least there is no free education for women who study. They are not even thinking about interest waiver if they take education loans. If they had done that, Beti Padao… Beti Bachao would have made sense. Even if there is a woman as the Finance Minister, there is no special benefit for women. Similarly, girls who study should be provided with free education loans. Similarly Governments should support their higher education. The slogan of Beti Padao .. Beti Bachao should be implemented. Strict action should be taken against the culture of treating women as a luxury item. Laws should be made to deal strictly with rape and harassment. Beasts who commit atrocities against women should be punished severely. If necessary, they should not hesitate to resort to capital punishment. Dowry harassment should be prevented. Safety should be provided in the workplace. All these can only be implemented through strict laws.
What is your opinion on the reservations available to women in legislatures?
-The ruling members have collectively failed to provide reservations for women in the legislatures. Even after passing the bill, it was not implemented. The BJP’s strategy of gaining political benefits from this bill has worked. Even though International Women’s Day is celebrated every year… there is no change in our leaders. They have deliberately blocked their rightful share in the legislatures for so long. We are not afraid of lowering the highest level of respect for women in society. It would have been better if their opinions were at least given value in the legislatures. But that is not happening. The big leaders are avoiding them by just wishing them well. They have ignored their dharma. The society also still sees them as a luxury item.. If a girl is seen, the beasts are unleashed with the aim of raping her. We must fight against issues that violate their dignity. The male-dominated society must be stopped. It must be suppressed. We must continue the struggle until we achieve our rights.
What kind of encouragement do you think women receive in Indian politics?
– Women play a key role in Indian politics, but they are not given enough encouragement. For some reason, women who excel in all fields are being suppressed instead of advancing politically. Many women are showing their potential due to reservation in local bodies. Only if they get reservation in the assembly and parliament, they will excel more. Due to their suppression, we are facing a week where the aspirations of 50 percent of the population are being crushed. Governance should be aimed at strengthening the democratic system with women empowerment. Social progress is possible only when women are given appropriate participation in all fields. In democracy, not only the ruling party but also the opposition parties and all the people have a role. Everyone should take note of this and move forward. In order to take forward our culture, which prominently mentions the greatness of women and the ideals of Indian women, society should move forward with respect for them. We should take decisions to move them forward in the fields of education, sports and culture. Only then will the progress of women that we hope for be realized.
To what extent do you think the significance of Women’s Day will be fulfilled?
-The United Nations has been officially celebrating International Women’s Day since 1975. Moreover, every year, this day is celebrated with a theme. The theme for International Women’s Equality 2025 has been decided. This year’s resolution is to move forward without gender discrimination. For women to be empowered, society must approve of their aspirations. Whether a woman wants to become an entrepreneur, rise to a leadership position in large organizations, take a break during childbirth and return to her job after four or five years, go to higher education after marriage, or work from home and earn something while staying at home, the only thing that should be done is not to stand in their way. According to a study, women spend 90 percent of their income on the family. Men spend forty to fifty percent. Empowering women means freeing men from the feeling that no matter what they do, they will fail. The theme highlights how women can be economically involved in the decision-making process related to development policy formulation. In order to take steps towards the future, women must be taken forward and gender-neutral. Women must be financially literate to achieve empowerment and financial independence. Especially lower and middle class women should be financially literate. If the prosperity of the family is the prosperity of the country, then the more economically prosperous the woman, who is a key stakeholder in the family, the greater the prosperity of the country will be. That is the message of Women’s Day. When women are empowered, they are financially free. Women have rights in social and family terms. However, to achieve those rights, they must have financial self-confidence.
How do you think She Teams are working to protect women in Telangana?
-Nowadays, cybercrime fraud is mostly happening on social media platforms. So every woman should be careful. If there is any problem, they should immediately send a message to the WhatsApp number of the defense forces. After the establishment of She Teams for the protection of women in Telangana, good results are coming. They are working well to support women. Compared to the past, the government is acting strictly in the matter of women’s protection. However, the same strict laws should be introduced across the country. Only then will there be fear among the people. Otherwise, when She Teams were established, the defense forces’ efforts to strengthen it and stand by women are commendable. This should be seen as an honor for the Telangana She Teams. Several programs were taken up to celebrate International Women’s Day. Since the She Teams were formed, their role and efforts should be appreciated. In addition to solving many critical problems and cases, the She Teams have succeeded in reassuring women that they are there. Good results have been achieved by organizing awareness programs about Dial 100, women’s safety, and She Teams. Many steps have been taken in the matter of women’s safety. She Teams have played a key role in getting the accused punished in cases of harassment or rape of women. These teams are working hard to ensure that young women and girls can now live fearlessly in the city. The Telangana government has taken the lead in organizing ‘She’ teams to support and protect them and ensure their safety.
Young people are becoming addicted to online games. This includes women in particular. What advice do you have for them?
– Hundreds of youth are being forced into online games. It is sad that women are especially involved in this. The rampant freedom is also making them fearless. Laws are not respected. Murders and suicides have become common. To stop these, totalitarian policies are needed. Mainly, betting apps are losing money as well as lives. The rulers who should have stopped them are looking for a way out. Gambling is taking lives. Not only gambling, but also alcohol, marijuana, and drugs are intoxicating the youth. After that, they are turning them into anarchic forces. Finally, they are taking lives. First, there is no action to ban such apps from the internet. Ads for apps, alcohol, and gutka are still coming today. Ads featuring famous actors are a big deal on TV. These should be banned immediately. Online betting apps and porn videos should be stopped. Such things are not seen at all in countries like the Gulf, China, and Korea. There is a complete ban on them. We, however, encourage them arbitrarily. Online betting includes casino apps, poker, roulette, blackjack, jungle, rummy, and lottery apps… these are all scams. All these are run from abroad, but they are having a greater impact in our country. Young people are taking their lives due to these. TV channels are broadcasting them freely, saying that money is coming in. Recently, a young man fell under the spell of a cricket betting app and swept away everything in his house. He also committed suicide by jumping under a train, saying that he could not give it up. Such suicides have become a routine in the country. Recently, when a betting app was uploaded on the Hyderabad Metro train, it had to be removed due to a large-scale opposition. With these betting apps being promoted by film and sports stars, the common man is also getting into this craze. In addition to this, the circulation of marijuana and other drugs has increased tremendously. We are seeing children of big celebrities, film stars, and politicians being caught. Unless all these things are banned immediately, we cannot protect the youth.
What is your opinion on the two women who recently died, Sukhdev and Shefali?
– Very sad. Whether it was a coincidence or if they were previous lives, the consequences are unknown. Recently, the lives of two women ended in a strange way. Both of them ended their lives on the same day and at the same time. One was a model, video jockey, and Bollywood actress Shefali Jariwala, and the other was a poet, anchor, and journalist Sukhbir Votarkar. Shefali is 42. Sukhbir is 40. What do you think when you look at the lives of these two.. They are almost the same in every way. Both are beautiful.. The failure of not being able to select properly despite many opportunities. The inability to make the right decisions in the freedom given by parents. Loneliness and lack of cooperation due to the pressures of parents’ work. On the other hand, there are many paths and many opportunities in the underworld. Without proper guidance, there are many wrong steps. Moreover, both are celebrities. Society does not rejoice if they smile on their faces. They should be seen smiling and smiling no matter how much pain they have. If they see any difference, society will not be satisfied. They cannot tell anyone about their pain. They cannot trust their friends. They are suffering from mental stress, falling ill, going to hospitals, taking medicines, and all the attention they get is not enough. It is very difficult to shine like that in a beautiful world. Fans are suffocating on the other side. Those who can withstand these pressures move forward. Those who cannot withstand them, those with more sensitive hearts, end their lives in some form or another. The lives of these two should be lessons for the youth.
