The Assembly on Friday passed a collective resolution for women’s empowerment at the behest of chief minister Nitish Kumar.

Congratulating the women on International Women’s Day soon after the question hour, he said: “Bihar was the first state in India to introduce 50 per cent reservation for women in panchayats and local urban bodies. Now, we want to create 10,000 women self-help groups in the state in the next four-five years.”

Speaker Uday Narayan Chaudhary announced the passage of the unanimous resolution as per “the wish of the chief minister” in the absence of the main opposition party RJD but the Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, Abdul Bari Siddiqui, mocked the chief minister’s initiative citing instances of atrocities inflicted on women in the city.

“Lady teachers were mercilessly beaten up. In the Nala Road area, women were dragged by police. In Gardanibagh, policemen caned women. All these incidents have happened within a year. What sort of respect and empowerment for the women is the chief minister talking about?” he asked.

The House of 243 MLAs has 33 women legislators. Of them, as many as 32 are of the NDA.