Black clothes like 'kala tika' to ward off evil eye: PM Modi takes dig at DMK on women quota law

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday took a swipe at DMK members in the Lok Sabha for wearing black clothes to protest the women’s quota law amendment bill, saying it works as a 'kala tika' to ward off evil eye.

Intervening in a debate on the three bills which seek to implement the women’s reservation law of 2023 ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, the prime minister referred to black clothes and flags, and said there is a tradition to apply 'kala tika' before commencing a good work for which he thanks them.

While the DMK members wore black clothes in the House, party leader and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin hoisted a black flag in the state and burnt a copy of the delimitation bill, dubbing it a "black law" that seeks to make the Tamil people "refugees" in their own land.

As soon as Stalin unfurled the black flag, DMK office-bearers, ministers and cadres hoisted similar flags at their homes, party offices and public spaces across Tamil Nadu.

In his speech, Modi asserted that no state – big or small, north or south, east or west – will be discriminated against in the delimitation of constituencies linked to the implementation of the women’s quota law, which mandates 33 per cent reservation for women in Lok Sabha and state/UT Assemblies.