New Delhi, Aug 1 (IANS) Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Minority Affairs, Kiren Rijiju, said on Friday that Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar said long ago that the measure of a society’s progress is linked to the condition of its women.

Addressing a National Commission for Women consultation meeting on the topic ‘Rights of Muslim Women in India’, Rijiju said that empowering Muslim women and educating them about their rights is an important step towards inclusive development.

The Union Minister said that economic empowerment of women is necessary, as when women are economically prosperous they are also powerful and with economic empowerment, they themselves are socially empowered.

Rijiju said that he will try and take forward the recommendations received from the consultation meeting.

National Commission for Women Chairperson, Vijaya Rahatkar, said that the Commission is constantly working for the protection of rights of Muslim women and their welfare.

She described the consultation meeting as a platform to bring the voice of Muslim women to policymaking.

“This is not just an event, it is an effort to give a platform to those voices which have been ignored for a long time. It is a shared resolve that now no woman, no matter what background she comes from, will be deprived of justice, respect and human rights,” she said.

The NCW Chairperson said, “I firmly believe that when we talk about the rights of Muslim women in the Indian context, it is not enough to just open the law books.”

“We also have to look at the changing face of society – where it is important to strike a balance between tradition and progress. We also have to discuss the legal framework that provided protection, and also the social scenario which is now on the threshold of change,” she said.

Rahatkar wrote on X, “The NCW is continuously striving to protect the rights of every woman and promote their welfare. The role of the NCW is not merely to make recommendations — our responsibility is to give a voice to every victim, to challenge every silence.”

“In this direction, our effort is to make this consultation meeting a powerful platform to bring the voices of Muslim women to policymaking. This is an endeavour, an endeavour to provide a platform for those voices that have long been ignored. This is a collective resolve, a resolve that no woman, regardless of her background, will be deprived of justice, dignity, and human rights,” she said.

–IANS

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