Supriya Sule: Lioness in Parliament or Gen Z’s Shade Queen?
Lok Sabha MP Supriya Sule at a media event in Mumbai (Image X.com)
She deserves credit for boldly speaking on reservation—a subject most politicians address only with reverence, as if any criticism were sacrilege.
By MANISH ANAND
NEW DELHI, September 22, 2025 — Quarter a century ago, Sify Café in a dark lane in Jia Sarai in South Delhi was packed to the capacity. The scorching afternoon resembled a sombre evening. Air was stale. But screens flickered brightly in curtained cubicle holes in the Sify Café.
Jubilant and jolted youth hit one common url— UPSC. Those who made into the selections chatted to share their marks. Those who missed out checked for reasons why they were jolted.
“What’s your score?” One cubicle hole keyed the texts to a friend, with whom he had struck a chord during preparations for the UPSC interview.
Instantly, his chat box flashed numbers. “But I’ve more 150 more marks than you.” The conversation hit a dead-end.
The “friend” vanished. She had made into the coveted IAS (Indian Administrative Service). But her silence on the last question was puzzling for her friend. He found out that she belonged to a reserved category, while her father and elder brother had already been serving in IAS.
Supriya Sule embodies the proverbial “silver spoon” syndrome. Sharad Pawar, her father, has been a towering politician of Maharashtra. The wealth of the family is also a subject of political grapevine. Sule is an inheritor of Pawar’s wealth of politics and other assets.
The social media is calling Sule a lioness. At an event of a television in Mumbai, Sule advocated that “reservation criteria should be the economic conditions and not castes.” “I will be ashamed to seek benefits of reservation. My children go to one of the best schools in Mumbai,” added Sule.
She is also the working president of the Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra). “There should be a debate on reservation policy,” added Sule. She quickly called for an opinion poll from her audience. They overwhelmingly voted for economic criteria for reservation.
“I am relieved. I am on the side of Gen Z,” quipped Sule. Gen Z is now a fearsome term after its rebellious constituents burnt down Nepali parliament and banged Netas black and blue.
But the distance from a television studio in India and Indian parliament often is found longer than seven seas put together. Sule has never raised a demand for a debate in the Lok Sabha on a review for the reservation policy. She also has never brought a private member bill to make changes in the reservation policy.
Yet she deserves credit for boldly speaking on reservation—a subject most politicians address only with reverence, as if any criticism were sacrilege. A lioness charges into a marauding frenzy of prey, unafraid of harm. Sule still has a distance to walk.
(This is an opinion piece, and views expressed are those of the author only)
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